[ noun ] a person who swindles you by means of deception or fraud <noun.person>
Swindler \Swin"dler\, n. [G. schwindler, fr. schwindlen to be dizzy, to act thoughtlessly, to cheat, fr. schwindel dizziness, fr. schwinden to vanish, to disappear, to dwindle. See {Swim} to be dizzy.] One who swindles, or defrauds grossly; one who makes a practice of defrauding others by imposition or deliberate artifice; a cheat.
Syn: Sharper; rogue.
Usage: {Swindler}, {Sharper}. These words agree in describing persons who take unfair advantages. A swindler is one who obtains money or goods under false pretenses. A sharper is one who cheats by sharp practice, as in playing at cards or staking what he can not pay.
Fraud and injustice soon follow, and the dignity of the British merchant is sunk in the scandalous appellation of a swindler. --V. Knox.
Perhaps you 'll think I act the same As a sly sharper plays his game. --Cotton.
Jaime Biton, a retired engineer, parked his Toyota truck in the marchers' path and affixed a sign reading: "This is the first private vehicle to enter Malacanang after the swindler dictator scampered."
A convicted swindler who nearly succeeded in taking $69 million from a bank is now charged with trying to pay a jail guard $70,000 to help him escape.
But while Boesky's wide legacy is that of swindler, Milken is regarded by many as a brilliant innovator who created a new form of financing that changed the way Wall Street and corporate America operate, for better or worse.
The People's Daily also reported today that a swindler in rural Shanxi province who defrauded business firms of $6.75 million was sentenced to life in prison.