Agostino von Hassell – Make no Mistake, He Never Was a Marine, A Better Word Would be Charlatan Internet 

 Look up this guy on the Web. Google him. Agostino von Hassell. It’s easy to find out a little bit about him. Right there near the top of the search results are a Wikipedia link (which I suspect is self-generated) and his main website. He proclaims to be a historian, author, chef and photographer. Owner of “The Repton Group, one of the nation’s foremost intelligence firms.” In his own biography, he states that he is “a life member of the United States Marine Corps Combat Correspondents, the National Defense Industrial Association, the OSS Society, the Association of Former Intelligence Officers, the American Society of Magazine Photographers, the Marine Corps Law Enforcement Foundation, and the Authors Guild.”

What he doesn’t say is that he is a Marine. He’s very careful about that. He leads you to believe that, but he doesn’t actually put it in writing. He even avoids the term “former Marine,” which in and of itself would be a dead giveaway. Marines never refer to themselves as “former” Marines. They are, simply, Marines. Once a Marine, always a Marine. Don’t be fooled by his lifetime membership in the U.S. Marine Corps Combat Correspondents. This is an organization “comprised of active duty, reserve, retired and former Marines who served as Combat Correspondents on active duty or worked as a civilian in journalism, lithography, photography, broadcasting, graphic arts, advertising and PR.

Agostino is not a Marine, even though his Wikipedia page shows him posing in Turkey in some sort of BDU (battle dress uniform) with no Marine Corps markings or insignia whatsoever. Perhaps he was deployed with Marine units and covered them in the field, but he was no Marine. Yet he tells people he was a captain in the USMC. I spoke with a person who heard him describe himself as such at an event. Impersonating a Marine is a felony. He also lives in his mother’s old condo in NYC.

And his company, The Repton Group, is run by a guy named Chris, who is a felon. He also professes to be a photographer. I’ve seen his photography. Let’s just say that anyone who is foolish enough to order an 8x10 photo of his for $300 – his least expensive ordering option – deserves what they get. I must say, I haven’t tried his cooking yet (remember, he says he’s a chef) so you never know. There’s still a window of opportunity open for him there. Everything else ... not so much. Don't get taken in by this guy and his line. Steer clear well clear of him. He’s bad news on a number of levels.