An air travel broker was indicted Wednesday on charges he siphoned millions of dollars from high-flying clients whose private charter flights he booked.
William Boos, 55, pleaded not guilty in state Supreme Court in Manhattan to charges alleging he routinely pocketed money from an international consulting firm, an art gallery, and an unnamed New York City-based broadcast journalist between December 2017 and 2020.
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Judge Michele Rodney set Boos’ bail at $500,000 cash over $1 million bond and ordered him to surrender his passport.
American Express tipped off authorities about the Orlando, Fla. man and his company Direct Airway after detecting suspicious activity.
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Boos charged an international consulting firm’s American Express card $3 million for pricey flights its employees never took, prosecutors said.
When a Manhattan art gallery owner found extra charges for air travel, to the tune of $1 million on their American Express card, they contacted Boos, who said it was a mistake, according to the indictment. He allegedly tried to back it up with 24 forged documents to make it look like he refunded their account.
He stole $63,000 from a TV journalist by billing them twice — using their American Express card — for a roundtrip flight on a private charter flight. When confronted, he sent bogus paperwork to the reporter’s assistant, according to the charges.
“William Boos thought he could fly above the law, allegedly using his clients’ American Express cards without authorization to siphon off millions for himself. But now, thanks to the hard work of my office, he’s landed in hot water,” said Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.
“New Yorkers deserve to book air travel without worrying about falling victim to theft and criminal fraud.”
Boos faces charges of grand larceny, criminal possession of a forged instrument, and more than 30 counts of criminal possession of a forged instrument.
His lawyer could not be reached for comment.
Private air travel broker stole millions from NYC clients
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