Amy Bock’s parents encouraged her interest in the theater, says Headstuff, and there’s no way they could have known she would eventually put that interest to good use and become New Zealand’s most notorious con artist. Initially making a living as a teacher, Bock eventually started running a variety of scams. From buying big-ticket items on credit then selling them for a profit to asking to “borrow” items then simply walking off with them, she was wildly prolific when it came to the con. She defrauded those who hired her as a governess, cook, or housekeeper, mortgaged or pawned employers’ property, and talked her way out of trouble with surprising success. And then, she became Percy Redwood.
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Redwood, the story went, was a wealthy sheep farmer who was on vacation when he happened to fall in love with Agnes Ottaway. Feelings were reciprocated, and the two were married. But, it was a small town in 1909, and people were naturally suspicious of this outsider. Their suspicions were confirmed, and Bock was arrested, sentenced, and released in 1912. She continued her habit of conning anyone she could out of some cash, and by the time she died in 1943, her shenanigans had ceased to be as news-worthy as they once were.
There is, however, a fascinating footnote that comes via RNZ. When Bock was 10, her mother was institutionalized for what’s now called bipolar disorder — and Bock spent her career using her mother’s mental illness as a crutch for her own behavior.
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