Thirteen-Part Original Series Shows the World's Worst Cons and How to Avoid Them
Premieres Tuesday, June 5th at 8pm ET
NEW YORK, March 14, 2007– With all the pleasures that world travel brings, even the most seasoned globe-hoppers can find themselves used, abused, and taken for a ride in ways that can cost far more than money. This summer, VOOM'S EQUATOR HD – the first high-definition television network dedicated to world adventure and green living – will present the original 13-part half-hour weekly series, Ultimate Tourist Scams. The series will take a global tour of the most notorious travel rip-offs and offer viewers practical advice from experts on how to steer clear of con artists. Covering territory as diverse as Kashmir, India and New York City the show is a wakeup call for travelers. The program will air Tuesdays nights at 8:00 pm ET, and the first episode premieres June 5th.
Broadcast in breathtaking high-definition, VOOM's EQUATOR HD is part of the VOOM HD Networks, a collection of 15 critically acclaimed high-definition television channels, available nationally on the DISH satellite network.
Each episode of Ultimate Tourist Scams will highlight a different popular destination and the fraud most commonly plied there. The show uses re-enactments and dramatizations of actual crimes, as well as first-hand accounts from scam victims about their encounters with the globe's finest match-stick men. Here is a sampling of the crooked plots chronicled in this series:
Spanish Car Diversion – This scam starts at the airport car-rental desk, where thieves scan for incoming tourists with lots of expensive luggage, Working in cahoots with partners, the bandits tail their prey in two separate cars, setting up a booby trap to blow out the tire of their intended victim's rental car. The second vehicle of thieves stops to offer "friendly" assistance, helping the tourists to remove their luggage from the trunk in order to reach the spare tire. As soon as the luggage is out of the car, the conman grabs the suitcases and speeds off.
Identity Theft: London-Style – Out for the evening, enjoying drinks at a bar, it's easy for a woman to lose track of her handbag. Suddenly, she realizes her bag has disappeared from under the table, and reports it to the staff. But, on her way out the bouncer beckons her over to say her bag has been recovered, and a quick check reveals that nothing is missing. The tourist is so relieved that she tips the doorman, only to discover later that her credit card is mysteriously maxed out. The bag she thought untouched had been, instead, rifled for credit card and identity details.
The Bolivian Fake Roadblock Scam – At the airport of a sleepy, picturesque town in Bolivia, a "taxi driver" preys on a unsuspecting tourist with the offer of a cheap fare. As the taxi begins the journey out of the airport, a young female accomplice "hails" the cab and also gets in-not unusual in this part of the world. At the end of the airport road, an "official" stops the car and asks for the driver's papers, then begins yelling that the driver's credentials aren't valid. He then inspects the female accomplice's passport and searches her bag, stating that he is looking for drugs. Next, he asks for the tourist's bag, in which he either plants drugs, or from which he steals money. It's a terrifying way to get taken for a financial ride…or straight to the pokey!
About VOOM HD Networks
The VOOM HD Networks are the largest and most diverse suite of high definition channels available anywhere. Produced exclusively in true high definition and 5.1 Dolby digital surround sound for distribution in the U.S. through satellite and cable operators, the 15 VOOM HD Networks carry programming in categories as diverse as sports, movies, fashion, music and art. The VOOM HD Networks are commercial-free and available nationally on Echostar's DISH Network. Developed by Rainbow Media to meet the growing demand for quality high definition programming, the VOOM HD Networks build on Rainbow Media's history of original programming innovation.
About Rainbow Media Holdings LLC
A leader in the entertainment industry, Rainbow Media Holdings LLC is a subsidiary of Cablevision Systems Corporation (NYSE: CVC). Rainbow creates and manages some of the country's most compelling and dynamic programming with linear networks including national networks – AMC, fuse, IFC (The Independent Film Channel) and WE: Women's Entertainment; its regional programming service – Rainbow Sports Networks; on-demand networks including Mag Rack and sportskool; and the largest suite of high definition channels available anywhere – the VOOM HD Networks. Rainbow's other businesses include its film distribution, production and exhibition division – IFC Entertainment; in addition to its advertising sales division – Rainbow Advertising Sales Corporation – and its full service network programming origination and distribution company – Rainbow Network Communications.