Accused con man 'Bobby Thompson' had troubled past in Arizona; Disbarred for stealing client's cash

CLEVELAND - NewsChannel5's investigators have uncovered new details about John Donald Cody, the accused con man who called himself "Bobby Thompson."

Cody was disbarred by the Arizona Supreme Court on July 26, 1985, according to the State Bar of Arizona. State court records say Cody "withdrew $100,000 from clients' trust accounts" and "disappeared" in May 1984.

At the time, Cody had his own law practice in Sierra Vista, Ariz.

Cody, 65, was wanted by the Internal Revenue Service and U.S. Marshals since 1987 for several fraudulent charges.

Monday morning, the U.S. Marshals, with the assistance of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, positively identified "Bobby Thompson" as cold case fugitive Cody. Cody is also wanted for questioning by the FBI in connection to an ongoing espionage investigation.

U.S. Marshal Pete Elliot was largely responsible for making the connection, after conducting many Google searches for cold case fugitives with ties to the military, and found a picture of Cody. After receiving a copy of Cody's fingerprints from the FBI, he was able to confirm a match.

"Bobby Thompson" has been accused of stealing millions of dollars donated for the sole purpose of aiding U.S. veterans. "Thompson," which was just one of many aliases, was on the run for several years. He was also known to alter his appearance often.

"Thompson" was arrested by U.S. Marshals in Portland Ore., and brought back to Ohio to face charges. After his arrest, authorities seized nearly $1 million that "Thompson" had locked in a storage locker.