Astor Heir Tries to Sell Timepiece, Claiming it Belonged to John Jacob Astor IV

Anthony Marshall has been caught trying to sell off a century-old Astor family heirloom that may just be a phony.  

This isn’t the first time he has engaged in less than honest dealing. In 2009, Marshall was convicted of conspiring to steal $60 million from his mother, Brooke Astor.

Now he is trying to sell a gold pocket watch, claiming that his grandfather, John Jacob Astor IV, wore it when he died on the Titanic.  Such an heirloom does exist, but a West Coast developer named John Miottel claims he bought that watch in 1997 and he has papers to prove it. Miottel claims the watch Marshall is trying to pawn off as John Jacob Astor’s is in fact a different watch. Marshall’s wife, Charlene, maintains that Miottel’s story is not true.  She also says that Marshall insists the watch he is attempting to sell is the real deal.

See Astor Heir Marshall in Titanic Watch ‘Scam,’ Estate of Denial, Mar. 13, 2013. 

Special thanks to Jim Hillhouse (Professional Legal Marketing (PLM, Inc.)) for bringing this article to my attention.