John Ruffo, one of the most wanted fugitives for 23 years, may have been seen at a Dodgers game

(CNN) – The United States Marshals Service is asking for the help of the public to identify a man who, according to investigators, looks a lot like one of his most wanted fugitives, who has been a fugitive for 23 years.

John Ruffo was convicted in the late 1990s of a $ 350 million bank fraud scheme and sentenced to 17 1/2 years in jail. He was granted bail, and he never appeared in prison to serve his sentence.

About $ 13 million of the silver was never recovered.

In September 2016, investigators got a tip that Ruffo, now 66, had been to a baseball game between the Boston Red Sox and the LA Dodgers. The game had taken place on August 5 of that year and he, according to the information, was sitting there about four rows from the point of home and was wearing a blue shirt, the Marshals Service said in a news release.

A video from the game confirmed that a man whose appearance matched Ruffo’s description was sitting several rows behind the home. Before that possible 2016 sighting, Ruffo had not been caught since 1998, when he was seen at an ATM in New York, sheriffs said.

The last confirmed sighting of Ruffo was in 1998 at a New York ATM, according to the Marshals Service. This is the last known image of him.

Investigators were able to determine the location of the seat: section 1 of the Dugout Club, row EE, seat 10. But although they have found the seat and identified the person who purchased it, they have not been able to identify the man in the blue shirt.

Now Ruffo is the character on the ABC news podcast “Have You Seen This Man?”

Following conviction for his role in what the Marshals Service says was one of the largest bank scams in U.S. history, Ruffo was granted a $ 10 million bond and ordered to appear in a federal prison in New Jersey on November 9, 1998, to begin serving his 210-month jail sentence. But it never appeared.

The following day an arrest warrant was issued. The sheriff’s corps discovered that Ruffo drove a rental car to a parking lot at John F. Kennedy International Airport on November 9. He is believed to have rented the car earlier that day in Manhattan and withdrew money from an ATM on his way to the New York airport, the Marshals Service said.

Investigators say that if the man in the blue shirt is Ruffo, he is probably using an alias.

John Ruffo, a “master manipulator” who enjoys “good wine, gambling and good hotels”

Since Ruffo’s disappearance, the Marshals Service says it has followed hundreds of leads in the United States and around the world. Although multiple sightings of Ruffo have been reported, the ATM photograph is the latest confirmed.
23 years ago, Ruffo was 1.65 meters tall and weighed about 77 kg, according to authorities.

“It is known that he is a computer expert and that he likes good wines, gambling and good hotels,” says the press release. “He is reportedly lactose intolerant. Ruffo was known to be a storyteller, someone who liked to cheat and had a desire to impress others. He has been called a master manipulator.”

This is what Ruffo would look like now, according to a projection made by the Marshals Service.

From his time as an entrepreneur in New York, researchers say, Ruffo has a number of international connections. He had traveled to Aruba and showed interest in Italy, where he was known to have traveled in the past.

Given those strong international ties and the likelihood that Ruffo may be living abroad, the search notices have been translated into seven languages, the Marshals Service said.

A reward of up to $ 25,000 is offered for any information leading to Ruffo’s arrest.

The Marshals Service says anyone with information should contact the nearest district office or submit a tip via 877-WANTED2 or the agency’s app or website.