Best-selling author, lecturer, and “Catch-Me-If-You-Can” former con man Frank Abagnale will make an appearance before a GIA Symposium audience Aug. 29, 2006, as the Tuesday morning keynote speaker.

Once called “one of the world’s most famous confidence men,” Abagnale is now internationally respected for his expertise in white-collar crime countermeasures. He annually conducts seminars for organizations worldwide, and more than 14,000 financial institutions, corporations, and law enforcement agencies use his fraud-prevention programs.

Abagnale’s early career as a con artist began more than 35 years ago. Between the ages of 16 and 21, he successfully posed as an airline pilot, an attorney, a college professor, and a pediatrician—all without even having a high school diploma. In those five years, he cashed fraudulent checks totaling $2.5 million in every state and 26 foreign countries. He served time in French, Swedish, and U.S. prisons before being released on the condition that he would help the U.S. government, without remuneration, by teaching and advising federal law enforcement agencies.

After turning to the other side of the law, Abagnale wrote several books about fraud and white-collar crime. In 2002, Director Steven Spielberg turned Abagnale’s best-selling memoir into a major motion picture, “Catch Me If You Can,” starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks. A television series is also being developed, scheduled to air in 2006, along with a Broadway play based on the book. “I did not make this film about Frank Abagnale because of what he did,” Spielberg said, “but because of what he has done with his life the past 30 years.”

GIA’s 4^th International Gemological Symposium, Aug. 27–29, will host an impressive list of speakers and panelists, as well as a full agenda of engaging sessions and networking opportunities. Upwards of 1,500 industry members are anticipated for the the event, which features a wide range of experts. In addition, several of the gem trade’s most controversial topics will be tackled in debate rooms. Before Symposium, the GIA Gemological Research Conference, Aug. 26–27, will provide a new forum for the exchange of scientific information by top researchers and educators in gemology and related disciplines.

The early-registration discount ends Dec. 31; sign up now and save. To register for Symposium and/or the Gemological Research Conference, e-mail igs@gia.edu, or click here for more information.