New York Magazine Issues Apology After 'Wall Street Whiz Kid' Admits He Lied About $72M Fortune
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Turns out, if it sounds too good to be true, it usually is.
In an article published this week in New York Magazine, a self-described Wall Street whiz kid, Mohammed Islam, said he made $72 million investing in the stock market.
In this week's issue of New York Magazine, Mohammed is ranked "number 12" of "reasons to love New York" because he "made $72 million trading stocks on his lunch break."
As CBS2's Dana Tyler reported, Instagram photos showed the 17-year-old easily making friends as the Investment Club President at his prestigious high school.
He even presented a lecture about his supposed financial prowess.
However, after a lot of buzz was generated about his story Monday, Islam said he made it all up, CBS News correspondent Michelle Miller reported.
New York retracted the story's title.
On Tuesday, the magazine issued an apology to its readers, saying, "After the story's publication, people questioned the $72 million figure in the headline, which was written by editors based on the rumored figure. The headline was amended. But in an interview with the New York Observer last night, Islam now says his entire story was made up. A source close to the Islam family told the Washington Post that the statements were falsified. We were duped. Our fact-checking process was obviously inadequate; we take full responsibility and we should have known better. New York apologizes to our readers."
"I think that he wanted to impress people, and he told a few fibs, and got this reputation as this master investor and once that reputation is rolling how do you unwind it?" Ken Kurson, who conducted the interview for the New York Observer, said.
The rumors of Mohammed's self-made million dollar fortune reportedly began at his high school late last year. That's when the 17-year-old from Queens realized he would turn those rumors into an elaborate, exaggerated lie, CBS News reported.
"People want stories. They want them fast, but they also want them right, and there is tension between getting them up there fast, and getting them up there correctly," Kurson said.
In a statement to "CBS This Morning," representatives for Mohammed said his millions are about as real as "Monopoly money."
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