In a bizarre series of events, George Karounis, an Australian impostor, has been slammed with an extradition charge by the Finnish government, only days after he walked out of Silverwater prison having served a five-year sentence. However, it’s not the speed of the extradition that is the interesting part of the tale, it’s the reason behind it.
It is alleged, to the extent of our knowledge, that the South-Sydney fraudster booked ACDC for a Finnish jazz festival in 2003, taking the initial payment, before running away. In order to successfully do this, it is alleged that Karounis posed as Angus Young’s eldest brother and Easybeats guitarist, George Young. The Sydney Morning Herald reports that it is alleged that Karounis stole over €50,000.
However, it didn’t just stop there. It is alleged that he continued to pose as George Young and promised a future in the music industry to one young ACDC fan, before he royally screwed him over. The SMH stated that “the man met the fake Young at his local pub, the Churchill Arms, in London’s Notting Hill. At first the impostor was all smiles, playing good mate to the men and gentleman to the ladies. Within a month he was offering jobs in ‘rock’n’roll’, such as courses in event management. But there was a catch: it required a money deposit in advance, reimbursed after the work started. The fake Young took £700 from the young man, his credit card, and copies of his passport and other identification”.
However, it must be noted that there are no specific links that tie Karounis to this crime…yet. Regardless, this dick move is something that no one should tolerate. Let’s see if ACDC have anything to say about this.
