In 2013 I appeared in an episode of Investigation Discovery Channel’s show EVIL TWINS to discuss George and Stefan Spitzer. The brothers were tried and convicted of sexual assault in the late 1990s.
Prior to my appearance the producers provided me with research on the case. The notes were thorough but, even so, I wanted to dig into the case on my own. It’s something I always do when I’m going to be interviewed for a crime show. Maybe the production company researchers had missed something, or I’d discover a detail that would add to my overall understanding of the case.
The first thing I wanted to know was if the Spitzers were still in prison so I searched the State of California Inmate Locator. I was shocked to discover that George Spitzer had been released in 2009. He was considered a high risk offender and the only record I found stated “The registrant may have subsequently relocated.” Then I searched the California Sex Offender Registry. He wasn’t there. George was in the wind. With his history I was convinced that he presented a threat to women.
Over the past four years I’ve thought about the Spitzer twins and the hell they put several women through. I searched off and on but couldn’t find any information regarding George’s whereabouts; until today.
Before we get to the Spitzer twins in the 2010s, let’s look into their past.
George and Stefan Spitzer (aka Gino and Julian, respectively) were born in 1956, in Bucharest, Romania, the sons of holocaust survivors. During World War II, the Spitzer parents hid from the Nazis in Bucharest. The twins’ grandparents died in Nazi gas chambers.
The twins lived in Bucharest behind the Iron Curtain until the early 1970s when they fled to Israel and Greece. In 1975, their mother died of cancer. After her death, their father moved the family to Toronto, Canada where he worked as an accountant.
As children the twins were like one person; nothing separated them. As they got older their distinctive personalities began to develop. George was more aggressive and usually called the shots. Stefan wasn’t as sharp as his brother. He was immature and had impulse control problems.
Even though Stefan was a dim bulb the girls liked him better. George was competitive and jealous of Stefan’s status as a chick-magnet.
The twins came to Los Angeles on vacation. They fell in love with the glamour of the big city—Palm trees, swimming pools, beautiful women. By the early 1980s they’d moved to Hollywood to become actors. They networked, auditioned and took jobs driving scenery around. They were attractive enough, but they couldn’t act. They had portfolios made and tried modeling but that didn’t work out either.
George and Stefan got a minor show business break when Liberace hired them as valets. The twins would later say that they were fired when they spurned the flamboyant showman’s sexual advances. I’m inclined to disbelieve anything the Spitzers have ever said.
After the acting gigs didn’t materialize and Liberace let them go, the brothers decided to switch gears and become film producers. They attempted to raise money for a porn project but earned a reputation as being quick to anger, and out of touch with reality. When they did get a nibble from a potential backer they always blew it with their irresponsible behavior.
They actually made a porn film—but it stayed under everyone’s radar. The bottom line was that George and Stefan were show business failures.
The switched gears again. They became car salesmen.
George and Stefan lived in a series of small apartments, first on the edge of Beverly Hills, then in West Hollywood, then in Marina del Rey, not far from the waterfront. They saw lots of beautiful women, but felt that the prettiest of them exceeded their grasp—unless they pretended to be something they weren’t—accomplished and successful.
They used pseudonyms when they tried to pick up women. George introduced himself to potential dates as Gino, supposedly the son of a Mafia godfather. Stefan called himself Julian, a martial artist who’d trained film star Jean-Claude Van Dam. To add international flair to their pick-up attempts they feigned Italian or French nationality and they creatively represented themselves as movie producers, pilots and psychologists
George and Stefan enjoyed using their nearly identical looks to fool women. They would change places in the middle of sex. They called it the “Spitzer switch.” But even though the twins shared the same facial features, and precisely the same chain of chromosomes in their DNA, careful observers could tell them apart—especially with their clothes off. Stefan was an inch shorter and 15 pounds heavier than George and had more body hair.
From the moment the twins arrived in California they had lied and deceived most of the women they met. Sure, their behavior was smarmy but they exhibited more ominous character flaws than self-aggrandizement. There were signs that George and Stefan were not the sort of guys who would accept no for an answer from any woman
NEXT TIME: The Spitzer twins cross a line.
To begin, you dont have all of your facts straight about me, but close. I was one of their victims. I learned of their release just last October 2016 to my shock, on Discovery ID. The DA never informed me that they received shorter sentences upon appeal, nor did they inform me of their release at all…If not for your post and Discovery ID story, I would not have known, and that to me is freightening and infuriating! I want to know where they are, I have right to know and to keep myself safe as do the other women, all women for that matter. I had half a mind to contact Ms Stone directly, but since I was an afterthought then, I did not think it would matter now. Thank you for your story and continued updates, it gives me a measure of comfort to know someone still cares about the survivors of these animals.
Dear Anonymous,
I am sorry for the pain you have endured as the result of those two idiots. They are despicable.
I appeared in the episode on Discovery ID. It was the first I knew about the Spitzer twins and what
they had done. I was horrified. When I learned that one, then both, of the brothers had been released from
prison I couldn’t believe it. I was angry. I read the judge’s statement at sentencing and I know that he intended for them to be
in prison for decades. For a while I had no clue where they were but I never stopped trying to track them. I always felt
that they would re-offend. If not rape, then certainly something else. And of course they have been in trouble in Canada
since they have been residents there. My hope is that they will end up in prison in Canada — perhaps for a scam. I hate
the thought that they are free. It is obscene. I care very much about survivors. You may be assured that I will keep my
eyes on the Spitzers. The fact that they are in Canada and many miles away from SoCal is cold comfort. They should be in
prison.
Your strength is inspiring.
Best,
Joan
Finally I found that they had been deported Canada where they have citizenship.
To anonymous survivor,
I have never spoken about this until now…I believe I was the second victim of Julian (Stefan) and Simone (George) Spitzer during the summer of 1981. I was twenty years old and on vacation with my family in the Bahamas during Christmas break 1980 when I met the twins. They were aspiring actors sitting on top of the world and seemed to be very drawn to me; a college student from a small Arkansas town. I had never met anyone like them; I was certain they were destined for stardom.
This unlikely encounter happened on the last night of our vacation. To my surprise, I received many phone calls and post cards from the twins upon my return back home. They invited me to be their guest at their home in Toronto, Canada the following summer. The twins lived with their father who would chaperone the visit. Mr. Spitzer spoke with my parents on several occasions assuring them that he was welcoming me into their home and would look after me during the trip. Mr. Spitzer was a gentle and fine man; I\’m certain he was heartbroken as he watched the fate of his beloved sons play out through the years.
I did spend two weeks in Toronto during the summer of 1981 with the Spitzers. I was twenty-one years old that summer; this summer I turn sixty and I\’ve never talked about the true details of that trip.
The story did not end there. The course of my life did change. I did not return to college that fall. Instead, I moved to Dallas, Texas with plans of being joined by the twins sometime later that year. The twins did come to Dallas with a big proposal. It was more a business proposition than a proposal; they proposed that I marry Simone immediately and the three of us would move to Los Angeles to pursue big \” Hollywood\” dreams.
I did not marry Simone and accompany the twins to California. They were very angry that I turned their offer down. Julian was especially angry; I did see evil in his eyes that day. He said I would be sorry. He said they would be big stars and I would be a nobody. I fully expected to see their names in lights some day in a good way. A part of me was very sad because I felt I was giving up on my dream too. Thank God; the sensible part of me said \”No\”…there was too much that was not right.
I never saw the twins or talked to them again after that day. It was not until 1996 that their faces appeared on the TV show \”Inside Edition.\” I stood in front of my TV horrified by the story being told.
I felt so sorry for all of the women that they violated and I\’m so sorry that one of those women was you.
This makes me so sad that these men had been conning and abusing women of all ages for so long. What they did to me changed me forever. I am 55 now and I am strong, vibrant, and successful, but not before I endured many things in my life that I don\’t think I would have if not for what they did to me. I would love for someone to find them and see what they are up to. The DA at the time told me they would not get out of prison until they were well into their 80\’s if that. What a joke. I turned them in immediately after what they did to me and the detective on the case told me it was MY fault. The two went to jail for a couple days and were released with no charges because they said it was a \”he said, she said\”. I barricaded myself in my apartment for weeks terrified that they would come after me. No one knows what these men are truly capable of or what they have gotten away with. I work with victims of abuse and SA all the time, their strength is overwhelming once they find it and believe in it.
How did these complete dirtbags get 10 years as serial rapist, Was it their ethnic background? Seems bias in someway don’t you think?
The only thing I can figure is that because they are Canadian citizens and CA prisons are overcrowded, they cut them loose. What really bothers me is that I’ve heard from several of their victims who were not given a head’s up that the sleazeballs were being released. I’m guessing because the brothers were returned to Canada, CA didn’t feel it was necessary to inform the victims. I disagree. I believe victims should ALWAYS be informed not matter what.
Who the hell knows, I know that the justice system is not justice at all
These sleeze bags are at it again in Montreal Canada, they are pretending to be big time casino high rollers, they are trying to hide their past using different names when they meat women and dazzle them with their casino gambling.
I am not surprised that they are back to their old behaviors. They are monsters. Do they have any pending
criminal cases against them? They belong in prison.
These monsters are still free!? HOW is this possible? The unrelenting facts of their horrid crimes and the victim impact statements from the LA case should have been sufficient to keep them in prison until their 80’s. Their sentencing statement from the Judge is chilling.
How did they get released? Their jail house confessions were taped in Romanian – and then translated for that trial in LA. They convicted themselves.
The system failed the victims in this case. The judge intended for them to be in prison for
decades, but it didn’t happen. The brothers were born in Romania. Following the death of their
mother, their father moved them to Greece. From there they went to Canada where they became citizens. At some
point, about 10 years into their sentences, one of the brothers was quietly released and returned to
Canada. The other brother followed within a year or so. Both of them have been in trouble with the
law in Canada. I am appalled that they were released. They truly are monsters.