Michael Finkel

For everyone else who thought they knew him, the task of untangling his web of lies had only just begun.

The next day,

And then, yeah, I started crying.

After two and a half weeks in Mexico, Longo found himself on a plane back to Oregon.

He never spoke to Yanina again.

I'm still alive, good.

Instead, Longo would refocus his charm on what would become his next bizarre relationship with the person he pretended to be.

The real Michael Finkel, freshly fired for his fictitious feature in the New York Times Magazine, needed some way to crawl back from rock bottom.

Jill Barker was Finkel's ex-girlfriend at the time.

As the Lincoln County prosecutors decided how to handle their high-profile case... We have elected to seek the death penalty.

Longo decided to talk to only one journalist, the one no one else wanted to touch.

During more than 50 conversations with Finkel, Longo promised the real story of the murders.

In his handwritten letters over the next year, Longo described himself as essentially a good man struggling to live the American dream.

Longo claims the checkforging was not an act of greed, but rather a noble attempt to keep his business afloat, all for the benefit of his beloved family.

As circumstances overwhelmed him, Longo says he fell into a vicious cycle of lying, living beyond his means, and then leaving town.

That's the best he can get.

Once again, Longo refused to face financial reality.

This time, he hustled his way into a ritzy apartment he simply could not afford.

But Longo was doing more than just spinning a tale for Finkel.

He was also cleverly feeding the fallen journalist's emotional needs.