揭开《美国骗局》中的真实故事

As we probed the American Hustle true story, we quickly learned that the FBI sting operation that was nicknamed Abscam is a contraction of Abdul Scam, which refers to the phony company set up by the FBI, Abdul Enterprises.

Yes. With regard to the American Hustle true story, not only did Melvin Weinberg avoid a three-year prison sentence, he was paid $150,000 of taxpayers' money for helping to stage and execute the Abscam operation. This was also due to the fact that after he had helped the FBI with the four cases he agreed to as part of his deal to avoid jail time, they offered to pay him to stay on and help them with Abscam. -60 Minutes

Like Christian Bale's character in the American Hustle movie, the real Irving Rosenfeld, Mel Weinberg, was instrumental in staging the Abscam operation. He assisted the FBI in selecting potential targets and contacted a variety of individuals to tell them that his principals (in this case the concocted Arab sheik) were looking to invest large sums of money in exchange for various political favors.

Abscam generated controversy in part due to the lengths that the FBI went to in order to ensnare its targets. This included the use of the "sting" technique and allowing Melvin Weinberg, a known con man and informant, to be involved in selecting the targets. Questions emerged about whether the undercover tactics used, including the creation of attractive criminal scenarios, led to entrapment. In the end, the courts upheld all of the convictions on appeal, even though some judges scrutinized the FBI's strategies and lack of FBI and DOJ supervision. Abscam was considered a success by the FBI, despite the controversy.

Others wanted more oversight and in the wake of Abscam, U.S. Attorney Benjamin Civiletti issued "The Attorney General Guidelines for FBI Undercover Operations" ("Civiletti Undercover Guidelines") on January 5, 1981, which formally laid down ground rules regarding procedures necessary to carry out undercover operations. Congressional hearings were held to discuss Civiletti's guidelines, at which time concerns were expressed over the undercover agents' involvement in illegal activity, the prospect of damaging the reputations of innocent civilians, the possibility of entrapping individuals, and the opportunity to undermine legitimate rights to privacy. Ultimately, these concerns led to at least three more sets of stricter guidelines being issued in the years that followed.