Man charged in
concert fraud caseHe allegedly booked a Van Morrison
show without any authority
A federal grand jury charged a New York man with fraud yesterday for allegedly accepting $47,500 to book rock star Van Morrison to perform at this year's Honolulu Marathon, even though he had no authority to make arrangements for the singer.
According to federal prosecutors, Kenneth Vangel, 55, of Suffern, N.Y., represented himself as an agent of Morrison to the Honolulu Marathon Association although he had no ability to secure Morrison's services for the Honolulu Marathon Luau/Concert on Dec. 12. The fee of $47,500 was a down payment for the performance, according to marathon officials.
Vangel was charged with four counts of mail fraud, each of which carries a five-year prison term and a fine of up to $250,000.
Marathon officials said about 500 tickets for the nonexistent concert were sold before learning that Vangel did not represent Morrison. According to an interview with Honolulu Marathon President Jim Barahal in May, marathon officials confronted Vangel about the situation during a conference call to New York which included Morrison's booking manager, Ron Delsener.
"Vangel didn't 'fess up or shed much light on this situation," Barahal said during the May interview. "In fact, he didn't say much."
Morrison was to receive about $75,000 for the Waikiki Shell performance but was "never made aware" he was scheduled to appear in Hawaii and that tickets were already being sold, according to Barahal.
Marathon officials said yesterday that this year's concert will instead feature Na Hoku Hanohano Award winner Keali'i Reichel and ukulele virtuoso Jake Shimabukuro.
