Local Con Woman Arrested

Passport photo of the "con queen"

It would seem that Nydia Neubauer has more aliases than Imelda Marcos has shoes.

She has held residency in Manhattan, Puerto Rico, and more recently in New Hope.

Since August 19th however, sixty three year old Neubauer has been housed in a Monmouth Co. Correctional Institution in Freehold, New Jersey. It is a far cry from the luxurious life she has led as a socialite up until now.

Some reports have her active as a con woman going back as far as forty years. So active in fact that The New York Times featured 'An Oral History' of her fallout amongst Manhattans elites including Denise Rich and Dennis Basso.

Her upbringing is unclear although some reports list her as a native of Puerto Rico. Her sister, Norma Vega, was quoted in The New York Times as saying "we grew up downtown, not uptown Manhattan."

Neubauer made her entrance into the Manhattan circle in 2001 and quickly established herself making promises of generous charitable contributions, commissioning jewelry, and boasting about the extensive properties she owned.

Eventually, the checks bounced and her act became as transparent as Baccarat stemware.

"The thing Nydia doesn't realize is that New York is a really small town. You only have to get taken once, and you are going to tell somebody," Catherine Saxton, C.E.O., The Saxton Group Limited told the The New York Times.

Evidently Neubauer has since reinvented herself as Lucy George and took up residency in a million dollar home on Mechanics Street in New Hope. The settlement check was returned from the bank to real estate developer George E. Michael, unpaid.

Michael reported the fraud to authorities which sparked an investigation unraveling numerous fraudulent real estate transactions.

It was also discovered that Neubauer made jewelry purchases from local businesses, Zikos Jewelers, and Dimitri Politicos that she financed with bad checks.

Neubauer currently faces fraud charges in Upper Southampton Township, New Hope Police and is said to be being investigated by New York Police although there is little detail as the investigations are ongoing.

Maura McCormick (mmcormick@buxmontnews.com)
Staff Writer