By LORENA MONGELLI and DAN MANGAN
June 12, 2008
Missing hedge-fund swindler Samuel Israel III "was scared to death" of going to prison for 20 years, a close friend revealed yesterday as the manhunt for the presumed fugitive continued.
But "Sam is a Christian man, and suicide, I don't think, was in his nature," said the friend, who requested anonymity.
Authorities are also skeptical Israel killed himself, despite finding his abandoned SUV on the Bear Mountain Bridge on Monday with the words "Suicide is painless" scrawled in dust on the hood.
Israel, 48, had been scheduled that day to surrender at a Massachusetts federal prison to begin his sentence for masterminding a $450 million Ponzi scheme that ripped off investors. Federal authorities believe the Armonk resident actually hopped into a waiting second vehicle and was driven away.
Last night, the US Marshals Service issued a "Wanted" poster for Israel, warning he "should be considered armed and dangerous."
But a spokesman explained, "It's an officer safety issue. There is no evidence that Israel is armed."
Hours after learning he was missing, Manhattan federal prosecutors on Monday got a judge to sign a bench warrant for Israel's arrest.
"The US Marshals Service [is] actively searching for Israel and have not ruled out any possibilities," US Attorney Michael Garcia said.
