From CNN:
Kevin Trudeau, the television pitchman and author who amassed a fortune telling consumers his secrets about how to get free money, how to lose weight and how to cure a number of illnesses the natural way, is headed to federal prison.
Trudeau, 51, was sentenced to 10 years on Monday for criminal contempt for violating a 2004 federal court order that prohibited him from making misleading infomercials and misrepresenting his weight-loss books. During Monday's sentencing hearing he also got a tongue-lashing from U.S. District Judge Ronald Guzman, according to the U.S. attorney's office in Chicago.
"Since the age of 25, (Trudeau) has attempted to cheat others for his own personal gain," Guzman said in Monday's sentencing hearing.
In a sentencing memo, prosecutors called Trudeau an "unrepentant, untiring, and uncontrollable huckster who has defrauded the unsuspecting for 30 years."

Interesting. I'm sure everyone has seen one pitch or another from this guy, who made his living bilking others out of their money with one fake scheme after another. I think his case is a good illustration about how far you might be able to get with a pleasant appearance and a willingness to try and stay one step ahead of the law. It finally caught up with him.

Good! He bilked a lot of people out of a lot of money. Just one more reason for the phrase 'buyer beware'!!

I think we're all especially vulnerable with books, don't you think? There's this feeling that if someone has taken the time to get all this material into a book, there must be some merit in it.

The truth is that a book can be just as much a scam as any infomercial. Somehow, though, they just seem more legitimate.

Somehow I'd never heard of Kevin Trudeau before this discussion started, so I searched for an article about this sentencing and found this link.

Maybe I benefited from the fact that i abhor infomercials, and rally try not to watch them.

Regardless, since it appears this guy is a cheating scumbag, I'm glad he got his day in court.