- 5 days ago
Scam City S02E04 Netherlands-Amsterdam
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CreativityTranscript
00:00They're the world's greatest cities, famous for their culture and beauty.
00:06But there's something else waiting in the shadows.
00:09The scammers, the hustlers, the thieves, and they're all looking for tourists to con.
00:16State against the what? Russian roulette. Are you joking me?
00:19I'm Connor Woodman, and in Scam City, I set myself up as bait.
00:24This is like being kidnapped.
00:26A willing victim to be fleeced.
00:28I'll catch the scammers in the act.
00:30You know where my wallet is.
00:32I know, yeah.
00:32And reveal the tricks of the trade.
00:34Sorry, I'm not talking about that.
00:35Because why? It's too dangerous?
00:37And I'll expose them face to face.
00:40We are filming you scamming me.
00:42Scam City.
00:43I get scammed, so you don't have to.
00:55Jerusalem.
00:56Over 4,000 years, it's been besieged, captured, and destroyed.
01:01And now it's divided.
01:05I've crossed the Israeli security wall into the Palestinian part of the West Bank.
01:10And a simple scam which started on the streets of the Holy City has taken a sinister turn.
01:29Romans, Christians, Muslims, and Jews have all laid claim to this ancient city.
01:33The arguments still rage today.
01:41Tourists flock here to walk in the footsteps of Jesus, worship at the Western Wall, or pray at the Dome
01:47of the Rock.
01:53With all these spiritual distractions, are the scammers having a field day?
02:00Well, down there is the Western Wall, famously called the Wailing Wall.
02:03It's one of the holiest spots in the world.
02:04It's also a massive tourist draw.
02:06I'm going to go down there, following the tourists, wearing my button cam,
02:10and see whether the holiness means there's no scammers,
02:13or the fact there's lots of tourists means that there are.
02:19It's known as the Wailing Wall, because for centuries,
02:22Jews have been coming here to mourn the destruction of their temple by the Romans.
02:27About 2,000 years ago, Christian tradition says that Jesus cast the money changers out of this temple
02:33for ripping people off in the presence of God.
02:36Let's see if anything's changed.
02:38What's this?
02:39What's your name?
02:40Connor.
02:42I'm on the steps down to the wall when a man comes up to me and ties a piece of
02:45string around my wrist.
02:46I want a blessing to you.
02:48What is this?
02:49The blessing.
02:49What kind of blessing is it?
02:50Pray good luck.
02:51Chaim Tobim, Chaim Marokim.
02:52Good business, good blessing, healthy.
02:54Pray for peace in Israel, peace in all the world.
02:57One hallelujah.
02:59Yeah.
02:59Chaim Tobim, Chaim Marokim.
03:00Par Nassar Tobin, Abriot, Amen.
03:02From London?
03:03Yeah, from London, yeah.
03:04Yeah.
03:05Maybe you can help something, donation, collect for the poor people,
03:08for the buy food, for the dinner.
03:10You collect money for the poor?
03:11Yes, yes, for the buy food.
03:13Rabbi, you have eight children.
03:15He has eight children?
03:17Eight children.
03:17Oh, so we're collecting for his poor children.
03:19We need food for the Shabbat.
03:21Okay.
03:22So it's not for the poor people, it's for your people?
03:23Not for me.
03:24Your people.
03:25Oh, you want money?
03:26Yes.
03:26What you can give to the poor people.
03:29We have some paper money, maybe.
03:30Paper money.
03:31A few coins isn't going to cut it with this rabbi's private charity.
03:35Clearly, he values his blessings pretty highly.
03:37This is a blessing from the synagogue?
03:40Yes.
03:41And are you qualified to give a blessing?
03:43Of David, Batekachmen.
03:45Thank you very much.
03:46Hey, how are you?
03:47That's something special, my brother.
03:49It's important.
03:50Oh, it's some money?
03:51Yeah.
03:52Are you a rabbi?
03:53Small rabbi, not a big rabbi.
03:54Small men.
03:55Oh, okay.
03:55So you're a small rabbi, medium-sized rabbi, big rabbi?
03:59Extra-large rabbi.
04:00One day you'll be extra-large?
04:01Nobody, no.
04:02Inshallah.
04:03Inshallah.
04:03To give something, my friend, okay?
04:05We need 200 shekel for Shabbat.
04:06You need how much?
04:08200 shekel for Shabbat.
04:09200 seems like a lot for a little bit of thing.
04:12No, this we give for free.
04:14We don't charge for this.
04:15The string is free, but their Shabbat will leave me around $60 lighter.
04:20Give 100 shekel.
04:21100 seems like a lot for a little blessing.
04:23So it seems he's happy to haggle over the size of the donation.
04:27Oh, my friend.
04:27You're paying for the poor people, for the high children.
04:30I mean, that's like $30.
04:31That's a big donation.
04:34Thank you, my friend.
04:35Hashem, give you all the blessings.
04:36Oh, I get a kiss.
04:37I get two kisses.
04:38Good visit.
04:39Oh, wow.
04:39Well, it's worth it.
04:40You want another 100?
04:41Thank you, my brother.
04:44They give you all the blessings to you.
04:46Yeah?
04:46100 shekels worth of blessings.
04:48Okay.
04:48Goodbye.
04:50Good Shabbat.
05:00Good Shabbat.
05:01Good man.
05:03Oh, no.
05:03They're approaching me again.
05:05Hello, my friend.
05:07Forgive me, I go home.
05:08You're going home?
05:09That's the end of the day.
05:10Because you give something good, I can buy.
05:12You already made enough money today that you can go home at this time?
05:15Yes.
05:15Already?
05:16Half day.
05:16Hey, brother.
05:18Hey.
05:18You're finishing work already today?
05:20Because of you, I can buy things for Shabbat.
05:23Right.
05:23So getting 100 from somebody like me.
05:25It's like I win the lottery.
05:27It's like you win the lottery.
05:28I win the lottery today.
05:29My small rabbi and his mate have knocked off early for the day.
05:33But not everyone is happy.
05:51So is he not really a rabbi?
05:53No, he's not a rabbi.
05:55Everyone is a rabbi.
05:57It's a revelation.
06:05You have to admire their chutzpah.
06:12At the holiest site in Judaism, there's guys claiming to be rabbis to rip off tourists.
06:18And what do you think could happen if I came down here dressed like a rabbi and put these
06:22on people's wrists?
06:24Well, could I make some money?
06:27Well, there's all kinds of people making money out of tourists here.
06:35But you only have to look.
06:36The people begging at the bottom are getting coins in their pots.
06:39But the two guys at the top dressed up as holy men and giving out these red bracelets,
06:43made enough of the folding stuff to go home by lunchtime.
07:01Down at the wall, it's not long before I bump into another man claiming to be a rabbi.
07:06But you're a real rabbi, right?
07:08I'm a real scammer.
07:09You're a real scammer or you're a real rabbi?
07:11Both.
07:11Because I met some guys up there who were claiming to be rabbis.
07:15I don't think they were really rabbis.
07:16On the steps.
07:17On the steps.
07:18That's the guys, yeah.
07:19You got the right guys, man.
07:20Yeah?
07:21They're your guys, man.
07:22They're not really rabbis, right?
07:23They're the scam guys.
07:24They're the scam guys.
07:25But you're the real deal.
07:26So there's real rabbis and fake rabbis.
07:30The problem is telling them apart.
07:41Like most ancient Middle Eastern cities, Jerusalem is full of teeming bazaars.
07:48These markets are full to the brim with everything from comedy t-shirts to expensive historical relics.
07:56But after my expensive meeting at the Western Wall...
08:00Hello.
08:01How are you?
08:02Fine.
08:02How are you?
08:03I'm aware that not everything in this town is as it seems.
08:08I don't really know very much about this kind of thing.
08:11So you'll have to tell me.
08:13These are all coffins.
08:15They had coffins?
08:16Who's this on the picture?
08:18This is a Roman coin.
08:20It's a Roman coin?
08:21Yeah.
08:22I've heard there's a market for fake relics.
08:24The first item I'm shown is a pair of silver cufflinks, fashioned from an old coin.
08:29This is Vespacia.
08:30Vespacia.
08:31Who was he?
08:32Who?
08:32Who is he?
08:33Caesar.
08:33Caesar.
08:34Wow.
08:35This must be pretty old then.
08:38Sixty-nine.
08:40See?
08:40And they were wearing cufflinks back then.
08:42I made cufflinks, yes.
08:44Caesar was...
08:45Where are they?
08:45His toga?
08:46Whatever you like.
08:48Caesar wore cufflinks?
08:49Yeah.
08:53No, I'm joking.
08:56So how much do these things sell for?
08:59In shekel or dollars?
09:01Dollars.
09:04$275.
09:07Nearly $300 for Caesar's cufflinks.
09:11I think I'll test the market for something a bit cheaper.
09:13This is a piece of portrait, but it has a Hebrew letter here, found in Masada.
09:21Look at this.
09:22These are Hebrew letters.
09:23Okay.
09:24See that?
09:26It looks a bit like water to me.
09:29Nice piece.
09:30Looks like an E.
09:31And this is an R, no?
09:32This is Hebrew, it's not English.
09:34It's not...
09:36It's like English.
09:39$70.
09:39$70.
09:41$70.
09:41That seems good value for a piece of history.
09:44It'd be nice to go on my...
09:47This is my certificate.
09:48To whom it may concern, there's one small broken...
09:52Clay.
09:53Clay.
09:54One broken, smoked broken clay.
09:562,000 years old, part of pot found in Masada, time of Roman period.
10:03Sold for $70.
10:06A piece of history with a guarantee.
10:09But if you can fake a relic, you can fake a certificate.
10:13Hey, you must be Shimon.
10:15Yeah.
10:15Thanks for meeting me.
10:16Nice to meet you.
10:16Please.
10:17Sit down.
10:17As an archaeologist, Shimon Gibson pulls these things out of the ground for a living.
10:23He knows the real thing when he sees it.
10:27This is my purchase.
10:29Fancy box, isn't it?
10:30It's a lovely box.
10:31Yeah.
10:31Half all the box.
10:33Half all the box.
10:33Now, the things that kind of stuck in my mind were...
10:35It's 2,000 years old.
10:37It's from Masada.
10:39It's Roman and it has a Hebrew inscription.
10:42So, as an expert in the field...
10:44Well, first of all, I've got to tell you that I...
10:46Be gentle.
10:48I spent $80 on this.
10:50Okay.
10:50And I have a certificate.
10:52I have big plans for this.
10:53I'll try and be gentle, but look...
10:55I have a display case at home that's waiting for this to go in it.
10:58Okay.
10:59Look.
11:00I've got complete ones like this.
11:02In fact, where we're sitting...
11:04We're sitting in this neighborhood having this sort of cup of coffee.
11:07This...
11:08The roof of this building has roof tiles of exactly this kind.
11:13The roof here is 2,000 years old?
11:14No.
11:15No.
11:16This is part of roof tile from the 19th, early 20th centuries.
11:20And it says at the bottom that this was made in Marseille.
11:23And so this is French.
11:25This is not ancient Hebrew.
11:27This is French.
11:28French.
11:29It's a 20th century French roof tile.
11:31And you've been had.
11:33I mean, this is fascinating.
11:35If someone has taken this, deliberately aged it...
11:39You know, it's handing out certificates and scamming tourists for 80 bucks is one thing.
11:43But what I'd be really interested to try and find is the higher level at which this happens for hundreds
11:50if not thousands of dollars.
11:58False rabbis are now fake relics.
12:01How far does this go?
12:03There's a lot of shops and a lot of tourists here.
12:06This could be big business.
12:09The cross before me, the world behind me.
12:14The cross before me, the world behind me.
12:19I'm rolling with the Christians, going to the place they believe Jesus ascended to heaven.
12:24No turning back.
12:26No turning back.
12:28The Mount of Olives.
12:29They're looking for a spiritual connection.
12:31I'm looking to see if they get ripped off.
12:43The view down the valley is rich in biblical history.
12:46The cemetery has been used by Jews for 3,000 years.
12:50According to the Gospel, Jesus prayed here with his disciples after the Last Supper.
12:55To understand the geography fully, you need a photo map.
12:59How much are these, mate?
12:59One dollar.
13:00In shekels?
13:01How much is that?
13:02Five shekels.
13:07As I put my wallet back in my pocket, I notice my money's gone.
13:12Hey, hey, hey.
13:13Mate.
13:14This is your money?
13:15Yeah, that's my money.
13:16Careful.
13:17Careful, indeed.
13:19That's a nice little trick, mate.
13:21That's a nice little trick.
13:23When you took 20 shakes you want to give it to me, you fill it down.
13:28Just you don't see it.
13:29No, no, no, I didn't.
13:30You don't see it.
13:31You took it out?
13:31I put the money in the wallet and show him that it can't fall out.
13:35You took it out?
13:36No, no, but...
13:37It's not going to fall out, is it?
13:38What?
13:39It doesn't fall out.
13:41I just don't understand why you gave it back.
13:44Do you always do the pickpocket?
13:46No, no, no.
13:48No good.
13:49Don't say it like this.
13:50Why, how do I say it?
13:51What should I say instead?
13:52What?
13:52What should I say instead?
13:54I don't know.
13:55Pickpocket, no?
13:55No, no good, no good.
13:57My friend, no good.
14:00I'm a bit confused as to exactly what happened there.
14:03When I went to buy the mat, the guy put the mat straight over my hand with my open wallet
14:09and very skillfully, I didn't notice it at the time, he took out the notes inside the wallet
14:15and when he pulled the map away to give it to me, I looked down and the wallet was empty.
14:19I thought, wow, he's taken my money.
14:22It's definitely a pickpocket.
14:23He's done it very, very skillfully, but when I turned around, he was handing me back the money
14:27and I could not for the life of me work out why a pickpocket would give the cash back to
14:32me
14:32and then everyone started behaving very strangely.
14:35He was definitely not working alone.
14:36Those guys were all looking at each other and I don't know if someone had seen me or seen the
14:41crew
14:41or what happened, but the word went out and they have all gone, scarpered.
14:46That was extremely weird.
14:49My pickpocket and his mates don't want to know me, but maybe there's other guys up here who know them.
14:56The guy that was here before, he was selling posters, Jerusalem posters.
15:00You don't know him?
15:03Oh, he's selling books?
15:04Yeah.
15:04You sell many books?
15:06Yeah, sure.
15:06To tourists?
15:08Yes, I want living.
15:09You know, do you know, he's not a guide, no, he sells, like, postcards and stuff.
15:14He's a pickpocket guy.
15:16The wall of silence intrigues me even more.
15:19I'll be back.
15:27The fake relics racket is not going to be easy to crack.
15:31Shimon has agreed to go undercover with me to investigate.
15:37You might need to adjust your look, I think, Shimon.
15:40Okay, so I'll take off, uh, this vest.
15:42Well, the moment you look a bit like Indiana Jones.
15:45Yes.
15:46And I kind of want you to be my, uh, my tourist friend out on a shopping trip with me.
15:52But I know nothing about this business, so to know which are real and which aren't,
15:56we're going to need some kind of code.
15:58What about if it's unbelievably brilliant?
16:01Unbelievably brilliant? If it's a fake?
16:02If it's a fake.
16:03Okay.
16:04Well, let's see if we can, uh, go and get scanned.
16:09Yes.
16:09Yeah.
16:23They're good.
16:25Yeah, but how good?
16:26This shop is very high-end, and something has caught Shimon's eye.
16:31Good ones.
16:35That's, that's unbelievably good.
16:43Which is only $800.
16:46What about this one here?
16:47Sorry.
16:47What about, can you...
16:48This is intact, complete.
16:51It's very nice, that one there.
16:54No, I'm just admiring that one.
16:55Yeah, it's very nice.
16:57And where is this from when?
16:58This is Roman.
16:59This is Roman.
17:00Yeah.
17:01And how much is that one?
17:02This one is $400.
17:04Huh.
17:05But maybe you could do me a better price, more like $100 maybe?
17:09This is antique shop.
17:10It's not, no souvenir.
17:11No fakes.
17:13No fakes?
17:14No fakes.
17:15Okay.
17:16Original, original.
17:17When I say, you know, $400, I mean $400.
17:20And that's a genuine...
17:22Genuine Roman glass cup.
17:27Intact.
17:28No broken.
17:29Nothing at all.
17:30No cracks.
17:32Right.
17:32Nice souvenir.
17:34After a bit of haggling, I get a Roman glass for $300.
17:39A bargain.
17:40Let's see what else I can find.
17:43You've got an amazing collection of things here.
17:46It looks all good here.
17:48Shimon is drawn to a statuette.
17:51How much is this one?
17:53Which?
17:54$7,000.
17:56Wow.
17:56$7,000.
17:57This is a bit more serious.
18:01How much does this Egyptian one cost?
18:04$5,000.
18:05$5,000?
18:06Yeah.
18:07When the shopkeeper sees that's a little out of our league, he offers us another statuette.
18:13And do you know who it represents?
18:15Who?
18:16A God or...?
18:17Is this Jesus?
18:17That's Jesus.
18:18Jesus.
18:19Yeah.
18:20Wow.
18:21From the old city.
18:22So what date would it be if it's Jesus?
18:26That's 2,000 years.
18:272,000 years old.
18:29And could you provide a certificate?
18:33I didn't know they made carvings of Jesus while he was still alive.
18:37Yes.
18:39And that's with that stone.
18:41I brought it together.
18:43Oh.
18:44What is this?
18:47That's in his time, you know, he's make it homes.
18:51And he's make the wood from the wood.
18:55And that's, he's catch the wood with it.
19:01Right.
19:01Okay.
19:01Yeah.
19:02So it's like early joinery.
19:03It's the kind of thing Jesus probably used.
19:06You think Jesus used this?
19:08Yeah.
19:08Yeah?
19:09Yeah.
19:09This one, this one?
19:10Yeah.
19:11So Jesus would use it for cutting wood?
19:14Yeah, sometime.
19:15Or put in the...
19:15Yeah.
19:16Wow.
19:17Jesus' stone.
19:20I'm not buying it.
19:22Holy.
19:24Holy stone used by Jesus.
19:26Shall I have a look?
19:27Yes.
19:27And how much would that cost?
19:29This one, I make it for you $300.
19:31$300.
19:32Just $300.
19:33For Jesus' stone.
19:35Yeah.
19:36Yes.
19:37Yes.
19:38Jesus' stone.
19:39Jesus' stone.
19:40Jesus' stone.
19:41Jesus used this stone to make houses.
19:46That guy was selling more than just bits of old roof tile.
19:49He was offering relics that he says related directly to Jesus.
19:55So I have a Roman cup to add to my collection of artifacts.
20:01Fakes.
20:03Artifacts.
20:04So you're 100% sure?
20:05Yes, it is, yes.
20:06You can see it's made out of local glass, probably in Hebron or that sort of area,
20:11because they make a very nice sort of glass there.
20:13And they've smeared into the inside of the cup and around it a kind of white paste
20:19to give this appearance of an ancient patina or something like that.
20:23But it's fake.
20:24Right.
20:24It's worth maybe $5.
20:27Really?
20:27Look, he was very smooth.
20:28I mean, he knew how to play you.
20:30Remember the place we entered into...
20:32Oh, let's talk about that place.
20:36I mean, the stone of Jesus?
20:38Really?
20:39And the face of Jesus.
20:41I mean, here you have an iconographic miracle.
20:45Here you have a representation of Jesus while he was still alive,
20:48according to this shop owner.
20:50He wants to know where you are.
20:51So he was showing you these big objects, and he was sort of saying,
20:55well, 4,000, I think he was.
20:56I mean, come on.
20:57That's when it gets serious, isn't it?
20:59I mean, the little piece of pottery that I bought, you know, 70 or 80 bucks.
21:05The...
21:06This, you know, we're into the hundreds of bucks.
21:10But, you know, that, that's serious.
21:13Thousands.
21:13Thousands of dollars.
21:15So that's a lot of money.
21:18It's a dodgy business.
21:19Got, what, $270?
21:21$270.
21:22Yeah.
21:24Worthless.
21:27That was an experience, wasn't it?
21:28Clever, though.
21:29Clever.
21:30A pleasure meeting you.
21:31Yeah, you too.
21:32Well, thank God I had Shimon with me, is all I can say.
21:36If I hadn't, I'd have been like any tourist.
21:37I'd have been such a sitting duck.
21:40But now I know they're fakes, it gives me all the information that I need
21:44to go back and see those guys and see whether they'll open up
21:46and tell me exactly where they came from.
21:51One of the main attractions in the Old City is the chance for believers
21:55to revisit the stories from the Bible.
21:58I'm on the Via Della Rosa, the route where Christ is believed to have carried
22:02a cross to his crucifixion, and I found the perfect person to show me around.
22:08You look familiar.
22:11I don't think I've seen you so much before, too.
22:13I'm Connor.
22:14Hi, guys.
22:15How are you?
22:15I'm doing good.
22:16I'm doing well.
22:17And you are Jesus, I presume.
22:19No, believe it or not, it's not a costume.
22:21It's not a costume.
22:34So this, the second, is where Jesus was given his cross.
22:40Is this the actual spot where Jesus was given his cross?
22:42Now, that's a good question.
22:44This is something that's more on the line of tradition and more of a private revelation,
22:49but it is definitely approximately the area.
22:52Definitely approximately.
22:54Well, you know, we can kind of get a little hung up on the details.
23:00Okay.
23:02And this is?
23:03This is the courtyard just before the entrance of the Holy Sepulchre Church.
23:08Right.
23:09So this is the site of the crucifixion.
23:11No, actually, this is just outside of where the crucifixion, and I'll say more importantly,
23:18where the tomb, where Jesus was laid to breast and where he rose.
23:22Right.
23:23And we're sure about that?
23:24This is the spot?
23:26You know...
23:26Are you sure?
23:28If you're sure, then that's enough for me.
23:30I'm sure that it's great when we celebrate that mystery at that place and have for centuries.
23:35It's very powerful.
23:38So according to the man who looks like Jesus,
23:41the holy sites may only be approximately in the right place.
23:44Okay, it's not a scam, but in this town, I guess everything is a matter of faith.
24:05I'm in a taxi heading back to the Mount of Olives to find my pickpocket.
24:12Sorry, what was your name, my friend?
24:13Abed.
24:14Abed.
24:14Hi, I'm Connor.
24:15Hi, Connor.
24:16Nice to meet you.
24:17So we're going to take a ride up to the Mount of Olives.
24:20When I have tourists coming to the Mount of Olives, I'm always warning them that you have
24:25to be cared for their passport, for their money.
24:28Even that you see the people who are selling souvenir or poster for the tourists,
24:32most of them, they are not earn money from selling this souvenir or these things.
24:38They're stealing the tourists.
24:40So they're selling the souvenirs.
24:41That's just a front or something, is it?
24:43Yeah, it's not some kind of, it's like a cover.
24:46So what happened to me yesterday happens a lot, but it doesn't explain why he gave me
24:50my cash back.
24:51There is a group of, I can see using small mafia control here.
24:57We have like one guy here, he controls all of this area.
25:01He has many people working with him here.
25:04He's like the king, and this area is like his kingdom.
25:07Okay, can you tell me this guy's name?
25:09His name is Wael.
25:10Wael.
25:11Wael.
25:12My taxi driver seems to know a lot.
25:14He might be a useful person to keep in touch with.
25:16Thank you for the information, my friend.
25:20On one of the holiest sites in Christendom, there's a whole network of scammers working
25:24the tourist beat.
25:26And supposedly, they're all run by one shadowy figure.
25:29If I find my pickpocket, maybe he'll lead me to this king of thieves.
25:34You're looking for the guy, he tried to steal you, right?
25:38The first souvenir salesman I approach already knows what I'm up to.
25:42Is he one of Wael's men?
25:43He didn't try and steal.
25:45He gave me the money back.
25:46That's what's the money?
25:46All your money?
25:47Yeah.
25:49Oh, he took it all.
25:50That's the problem.
25:51Yes.
25:51He's supposed to only take a little bit.
25:53Yes.
25:53When you take it all, it means you want to feel about this.
25:56If he takes some, he will not feel it.
25:59Yes.
25:59So if he takes it all, then I notice.
26:02Yes.
26:02If he just takes a little bit, I don't notice.
26:04So he made a mistake.
26:05Yes.
26:05I'd be really interested to see him again.
26:08If he hadn't given it back, I would have noticed.
26:12And then I might have called the cops and made trouble.
26:18Clever.
26:20Many pickpockets?
26:21He stole you?
26:23Yeah.
26:24Yeah, he did.
26:24Tried.
26:25He's right.
26:26He don't win.
26:32You always be careful wherever you go.
26:37No, I'm from London.
26:39Just then, I'm approached by another guy.
26:42He tried to pickpocket you?
26:44Yesterday.
26:45But listen, I want to find this guy.
26:46I want to find this guy.
26:48Why?
26:48Because I want to talk to him.
26:50I want to see...
26:51I want to come with you.
26:53Yeah?
26:54Come with me.
26:54Okay.
26:55What do you do on the mountain?
26:56Me?
26:57I'm in charge of the whole salesman here.
26:59You're the boss man?
27:00Yes.
27:01Is this the king of thieves my cab driver tipped me off about?
27:07Do you think it's possible we can find this guy?
27:09Sure.
27:10There were lots of pickpockets here.
27:12Yeah.
27:12Not 100 checkers, 200.
27:15Over thousands of euros every day.
27:18We never do this stuff.
27:19Not anymore.
27:20If he's the boss, I've got to be more careful, because he might be able to deliver the pickpocket,
27:26but he's guarded.
27:27You ever been arrested?
27:29Never.
27:29No?
27:30For what?
27:31For pickpocketing, no?
27:31No, no, no, no.
27:32No?
27:33We've been, you know, taken to the police station and, you know, talking about it.
27:37If this was in Arab culture, you know, real Arab culture, they cut his hand.
27:41Yeah.
27:42You know?
27:42And they take him for 10 years to do, he never go out.
27:45Right.
27:46And then, so, if you're the boss up here, what's your attitude to all these guys?
27:49Here, they're not allowed to come.
27:50We beat them up.
27:51We beat them up.
27:52We beat them up?
27:53Yeah.
27:54Because they're bad for business?
27:55Of course.
27:55Nobody will come here anymore.
27:57But you think you can help me find this other guy?
28:00Which one?
28:00The pickpocket guy?
28:01The one who took for your money?
28:02Yeah.
28:04Great.
28:04I'd like to meet him.
28:10I don't care.
28:11I know who I am.
28:12Here, look at the tourist police.
28:26He's changed his attitude and seems a bit too happy to help.
28:30What's his game?
28:32It's this guy with the black hat.
28:34Guy with the black hat.
28:36Oh, yeah, yeah.
28:36That's the guy.
28:37That's the guy.
28:37That's the guy I'm looking for.
28:38Yeah, yeah.
28:54He's a good boy.
28:57How are you?
28:58He's a good boy.
29:00He's a good boy.
29:02Oh, yeah.
29:05He's a good boy.
29:07I found him.
29:08Now all I have to do is get him to talk.
29:11So what are you doing today?
29:12A bit of sh...
29:14No.
29:16Any tourists today?
29:19Many tourists, they don't buy anything.
29:21No.
29:22Doesn't buy anything.
29:24When there's no tourists buying the postcards, you have to make money in other ways, right?
29:31No, not everybody.
29:34The people is very hard, not like before.
29:38Well, you take money from tourists sometimes, right?
29:40What?
29:40Sometimes you take money from tourists.
29:43You know?
29:44We sell himself things.
29:45Oh, come on.
29:48Come on.
29:48I know.
29:49I see.
29:50This guy is proving to be a hard nut to crack.
29:55Come on.
29:56I saw you do that.
29:56You do that to me.
29:57It's okay.
29:58It's fine.
29:58I'm not here to cause a problem.
29:59I just want to understand.
30:01When did you...
30:02How long did you...
30:04Did you learn about this job?
30:07Okay.
30:08No, no, no, no.
30:09Stay.
30:10Stay.
30:12Have a drink.
30:20He needs to earn some money?
30:21He needs to earn some money?
30:23There's something else going on here that I don't understand.
30:27Maybe YL can help me.
30:30So, Waleed, what do I have to do to get this guy to talk to me?
30:32Tell me more about his life.
30:34Again, I will make you appointment with him.
30:36Yeah.
30:38We come somewhere in the city...
30:39No, he's not...
30:47I'm disappointed I didn't get my pickpocket to talk, but Wale's promised to try and persuade
30:52him.
30:54Call her and tell your word to meet you in two hours.
30:57Okay, perfect.
30:58Okay, I will talk to you.
30:59Perfect.
31:00Okay.
31:01See you later.
31:02Bye.
31:05Waleed, be careful.
31:07There's pickpockets out there.
31:09I don't care about them.
31:10You know, if he pickpockets me, I put his head in the back and his legs in the front.
31:30I'm back in the old city on the trail of the fake antiquities.
31:35First thing is to try to get the shopkeepers to admit they scammed me.
31:41So, my friend I had with me yesterday, he's a professor of archaeology.
31:45If I can get them to admit it, maybe they'll help me find out who is behind this elaborate
31:50scam.
31:50We were thinking whether maybe you were thinking that I was a bit stupid, that you would sell
31:56me this as 2,000 years old, an effigy of Jesus made, like, when he was alive.
32:03I mean, even I know that can't be possible.
32:06And quite a few of the things in here, like the, um, like, you know, this one here and
32:14this one here.
32:15He identified as fakes.
32:16Top of the head.
32:17You are lying.
32:19I'm lying?
32:20Yeah.
32:20Why you are lying?
32:22Because what I would...
32:23One minute.
32:24I don't like to see you.
32:26You don't like to see me because I'm a liar?
32:28Yeah.
32:28So you're trying to sell me a fake?
32:30Because you are lying.
32:31I don't like to see you.
32:33Please.
32:33Please.
32:34Please don't speak anything.
32:35You're selling me a fake and I'm the liar?
32:37I am...
32:37I am not selling to you anything.
32:40Go.
32:41Go.
32:42Go out.
32:43You are stupid.
32:45I'm stupid.
32:46And you are shit.
32:47Because I saw through...
32:47You are shit also.
32:49Because I saw through your fake.
32:51Go out.
32:51Go out.
32:52I am not selling to you.
32:54No.
32:55I wouldn't...
32:55I am not selling to you.
32:56I am not buying.
32:57Go out.
32:58Go out.
32:58Go out.
32:59You are shit.
33:02What's he got to hide?
33:06Let's see how the other dealers react.
33:09I wanted to come back and talk to you about yesterday.
33:12When you sold me the little piece yesterday?
33:15You sold me a little piece of pottery.
33:18Yes.
33:18You remember it?
33:19Yeah.
33:20That's a roof tile from France.
33:23Roof tile from France?
33:25Yeah.
33:27What?
33:28Roof tile?
33:28From France.
33:29A bit like the ones on the roofs here in these buildings.
33:32Roof tile?
33:33Yeah.
33:34Roof tile.
33:35Is that a surprise to you?
33:36No.
33:37I love your roof tile.
33:38And this is French writing.
33:40It says the same on all of them.
33:42Roof tile that's written on something?
33:44Yeah.
33:44So they're all the same.
33:46They'll kind of say, Fabrique en France, or something like that.
33:49It's the name of...
33:50I think it's the name of the company in Marseille.
33:52It's the time of the template.
33:56Okay.
33:56What do you want to do with it?
33:58Okay.
33:58Okay.
33:58I'll give you back your money.
34:00No, no, no.
34:00I don't...
34:01No, no, no.
34:02I'll give you back the money.
34:04What is this?
34:06The Bible?
34:07Okay.
34:08I swear to you that I did not know that this is a piece of tile.
34:13And I swear to you we're not trying to rip you off or sell you something that is fake.
34:17Surely swearing an oath on the Bible can't be part of the Holy City's consumer rights.
34:22You guys are doing honky-ponky business.
34:25You know?
34:25I'm sorry.
34:26I'm sorry.
34:28Would you be prepared to kind of explain to me a little bit of this on our TV camera?
34:32You want me to get killed?
34:36You get killed?
34:37From the people that they make?
34:39They kill me easy.
34:41Suddenly, this isn't funny anymore.
34:44If they see in TV I talk like that, after 24 hours I might be dying.
34:50Why should I put myself in trouble?
34:52For what benefit?
34:54That's dangerous.
34:57Even for you I think you should take care.
35:00Why you should go to the root of that?
35:03Why?
35:05Because I want to find out the truth.
35:06If you find the truth you might be in danger.
35:12Why you should do that?
35:14Go to the root of dirty things.
35:16Why go to the root of dirty things?
35:19That's exactly what I want to do.
35:22Dig deep to find out how organised this business is.
35:26I've got one more lead.
35:27The dealer who sold me the Roman cup.
35:31I have to confess, we were on a bit of a shopping trip yesterday.
35:34We were looking for fake antiquities.
35:38And I think you sold me one.
35:40No.
35:40Yeah.
35:41No.
35:42Yeah.
35:42You know the cup?
35:43The little cup?
35:45Yeah.
35:45Yeah, it's a fake.
35:47It's a fake?
35:48Yeah.
35:49It can never be a fake, but you still say it's a fake, you get your money back.
35:55But it's not a fake.
35:56Okay.
35:57So first of all, first thing, I don't want my money back.
36:01Okay?
36:01First thing.
36:02Because I'm looking for these.
36:03And the reason I'm looking for these is that I'm in Jerusalem, I'm making a film.
36:07Yeah.
36:08Okay?
36:09So I'm with a TV film crew.
36:11Yeah.
36:12And we're trying to get to the bottom of this industry of fake stuff.
36:19And so that's why I was with my friend who's a professor.
36:21Sorry.
36:22No, no, no.
36:22I'm sorry.
36:23I'm not trying to catch you out.
36:25What I would love, would you allow me to come here with my big camera and explain to
36:35me what you know about the industry?
36:37I don't know much.
36:38I can't help you.
36:40You know, you know more than, you know more than I do.
36:42Okay.
36:42So for me, I don't know how to fake things.
36:49I'm not that expert in antiques.
36:53But there are some people, yes, that has an expert.
36:58I'll have to ask them and let you know if they meet with you.
37:04Finally, a lead.
37:06That would be great.
37:07But it is not connected to merchants in the city itself, you know.
37:11Hmm.
37:12And why is it risky?
37:14For them, you know, because it might be used to destroy the business in the old city,
37:19you know, that they have.
37:21Let me ask about this subject to you.
37:24But it doesn't have to be in the shop.
37:26Okay.
37:27We can meet somewhere else?
37:29Possible.
37:30Okay.
37:31Good man.
37:32Thank you, Ali.
37:37Finally, a bit of a breakthrough.
37:39Okay, he wouldn't admit that he knowingly sold me a fake,
37:42but he did tell me that there's an industry in selling fakes,
37:45and crucially, he's got a number of someone who might be prepared to talk to me.
38:00Hi, it's Connor, the guy that we met on the mount yesterday.
38:04While I wait for a call back about the antiquities,
38:07I ring YL to see if he's convinced my pickpocket to talk yet.
38:11Good.
38:12I'm just wondering, did you manage to track down our friend, the pickpocket?
38:20Okay.
38:22Well, I mean, I'm wondering, could I meet him today?
38:26Would that be possible?
38:30They're waiting for me in a park on the Mount of Olives.
38:34Maybe now he'll tell me why he gave me my money back.
38:41Show me again what you did to me.
38:43You said 20 shekels.
38:44Yes.
38:45And so I took out my wallet like this.
38:51It's gone.
38:52So you've done that with which fingers?
38:57Show me again slow motion.
39:04So you used these two?
39:05Ah, so it's these two fingers.
39:09So when did you first...
39:10How old were you when you first started?
39:19One week.
39:21Nah, come on.
39:22You didn't learn this in one week.
39:25Really?
39:29I think you're better than that.
39:31I think you're better than three months.
39:34I think you've been doing this for years.
39:36Because there's no way you don't become this good.
39:39I worked with a tourist 18 years.
39:4118 years.
39:4218 years.
39:43I knew he was good.
39:44Where did you learn this technique?
39:48From the other pickpockets.
39:49From the other pickpockets.
39:51They trained you?
39:52Yes.
39:52He watched what they do when he was young,
39:54and then he started to do it, you know.
39:56It's like university.
39:58The Mount of Olives University of pickpocketing.
40:01That's not in the Bible.
40:04What's the most money you made in one day?
40:0920,000 dollars.
40:1020,000 dollars in one day?
40:12Yeah.
40:13You believe that?
40:15I believe it.
40:16One people.
40:16One person had 20,000.
40:18Someone's walking around Jerusalem with 20,000 dollars.
40:21Yeah, the Russians, they carry lots of money.
40:22And what did you do with it?
40:23He gave it away to his brother, the one getting married.
40:25You gave it away?
40:27After all that?
40:28We go to the same places, I buy things, you know.
40:33We say things come easy goes easy.
40:35Easy.
40:36Easy come, easy go.
40:3820,000 dollars.
40:39Even if you took a zero off, it's still a lot of money.
40:43The Mount of Olives is about 10 or 12 people.
40:47No, but not anymore, Abed, not anymore.
40:50Abed's spoken out of turn while steps in.
40:54We had to talk to the police general here, the captain.
40:57And we told him that any big pocket, you don't arrest him, we're going to smash him.
41:03Smash him.
41:04Yeah.
41:05You scared of him?
41:06Yeah.
41:08Because...
41:08So who scares you more, him or the police?
41:11No, the police.
41:13All right, man.
41:14Come on.
41:16It's good to me.
41:20So I was right.
41:21He gave me the money back because he knew I would notice and then make trouble.
41:26The penalties are high.
41:28If he gets caught, he has to face Wael and the Israeli police.
41:32And Wael doesn't want the cops on the Mount because it would be bad for business.
41:43The antique dealer who sold me the Roman Cut hasn't called back.
41:49The trail is dead and I'm running out of time.
42:01Out of desperation, I ring Abed, my taxi driver who took me to the Mount of Olives.
42:07He seems to know a lot of people who run this town.
42:10He says he can connect me.
42:12The problem is, the meat is out of the old city, in Palestinian controlled territory.
42:17A virtual war zone.
42:19So today, as you know, the interview that we've set up requires us to go through occupied territories across the
42:27wall and into the West Bank.
42:29And if any of you are not comfortable with doing that, now is the time to say.
42:39We head out to a rendezvous across the wall that divides Israel from the West Bank.
42:47We've been told that the man we're hoping to meet acts as a middle man between the manufacturers and the
42:53shops who sell the fakes.
42:58This isn't on the tourist tour.
43:04The crumbling walls of the old city are replaced by a fortified cement barrier that divides Israel and Palestinian territory.
43:13We've been told to wait in the shadows of the wall.
43:18There's no one here.
43:20We have to wait.
43:23Abed phones his contact.
43:3240 minutes later, a truck pulls up.
43:43Hi.
43:44Assalamu alaikum.
43:46Already in Jerusalem, we've made some filming in different shops.
43:51Most antiquities are genuine, but some antiquities, fake.
44:09Fake coins.
44:10I was offered these for $275 each in Jerusalem.
44:14The shopkeeper, how much does the shopkeeper buy it for?
44:17Half a dollar.
44:18Half a dollar.
44:22The shopkeeper buys it for half a dollar?
44:23Yes?
44:24Would you mind explaining this to me if he gets a camera?
44:27I don't want to get a car, shall I?
44:30No.
44:32No.
44:32I don't want to get a car.
44:34I don't want to get a car.
44:38I don't want to get a car.
44:44For the security.
44:45You're wanted by security.
44:46Yeah.
44:47And they still want you now.
44:48So you're a wanted man.
44:50Can I show you something?
44:55Let's see if he really knows what he's talking about.
45:15And where did your fake one come from?
45:21They make them in factory?
45:24Yes.
45:25The Lebanese make a glass room.
45:29Professor, he cannot know this.
45:31Really, they're that good?
45:32They make them in a factory there and then they bring them here?
45:35They smuggle it into Palestine?
45:37Yes.
45:38And then from Palestine into Jerusalem?
45:39Yes.
45:40So these fakes come from all over the Middle East,
45:43and Jerusalem is their shop window to the world.
45:47I'm a big fan of the Muslims.
45:52I'm a big fan of the Muslims.
45:54I'm a big fan of the Muslims.
45:54I'm a big fan of the Muslims.
45:55I mean, how many pieces like this come from Iraq,
45:59come from Libya, now come from Syria?
46:02And every month I have a friend from Jerusalem,
46:07he takes from Iraq,
46:11Moscow, Syria,
46:153,000 pieces come to Israel.
46:19All real?
46:20Really?
46:22Every month.
46:23So really what you're saying is that the big problem now
46:27is not the fakes,
46:28it's the stolen items from the fallen countries
46:32after the Arab Spring.
46:34If you...
46:35Look!
46:36If you give him a bill,
46:38you can buy him,
46:38for example,
46:38for 20 or 30 dollars,
46:40I'll put your documents,
46:41your government,
46:43and your government,
46:44you can't...
46:44You can't confirm it.
46:46Who?
46:48From Iraq.
46:49From Syria.
46:50Who do?
46:52Thousands of pieces.
46:53Smuggled.
46:54Real pieces.
46:55And we're talking about historically important pieces?
46:58Yeah.
47:01There's a massive industry
47:03with a lot of profit to be made
47:04in producing fakes
47:05over on this side of the wall
47:07and selling them to tourists
47:08in Jerusalem on that side of the wall.
47:10What's even more frightening
47:11is that now there's another industry growing
47:14since the Arab Spring
47:15in genuine antiquities
47:16being smuggled in
47:17from other parts of the Arab world.
47:19And Jerusalem
47:21is the route to the rest of the world.
47:26I never imagined that on my journey
47:28through the tourist shops of Jerusalem,
47:30I would stumble across an international racket
47:33smuggling genuine historical relics.
47:39It's a city where con men and gang bosses
47:41lie in wait
47:42at some of the world's most sacred sites,
47:45preying on pilgrims and tourists alike.
47:49It may be a city of believers,
47:51but be careful who you believe,
47:52or you could become a victim of the scams played out
47:56on its ancient streets.
47:57By the way.
48:15They ran into custody.
48:17I was a trouxer.