Bottom Line on Scamming NYU Donors

New York University has had a remarkable rise into the top echelons of universities, in terms of a strong academic programs and desirability from prospective students, but it's also had it rough. Over the past few years, there were a spate of student suicides and outcries over its rapid downtown development. And now, there's a spate of deep-pocketed donors who have turned out to be frauds. Alberto Vilar, a supposed billionaire philanthropist, pulled the wool over NYU's eyes, as well as a number of other arts organizations, after his May arrest for fraud. Vilar had donated $23 million to NYU, to start a "Rhodes-like program" for arts scholars in 2001. However, Gothamist believes we read that no students were accepted into the program because there was never any money. D'oh!

And then there's the Yalincak family. Hakan Yalincak and his mother were indicted for running a hedge fund scam. Yalincak was arrested in May over a $43 million bank fraud scam, and then it was revealed his mother had a history of defrauding people (like practicing medicine without a license in Ohio). Anyway, it turns out that even though the Yalincak's $21 million gift to NYU for the General Studies Program and Turkish history scholarship is probably a fake, NYU is still naming the building that used to house the Bottom Line after the family. NYU says it has received over a $1 million from them, though it's unclear if the $1 million is from investors who thought their money was going to an actual fund. This comes from next week's New York magazine, which will have an exclusive interview with the mother and son. Gothamist can't wait for the Law & Order based on scamming philanthropists who donate to Hudson University.