Mark Olmstead found out he had HIV at the beginning of the AIDS epidemic, when the disease was a death sentence. Figuring he had nothing to lose, he pulled off a string of scams including credit card fraud, insurance fraud, dealing crystal meth, and faking his own death, assuming he’d be dead for real before any of the consequences caught up to him. Except he didn’t die.

Kim Daly, whose book The True Crime File hits bookstores May 10 and is available for pre-order now, brings us a movie idea that brings us both the dizzying highs and lows of a charming con man, and an unflinching look at the AIDS crisis of the 80s and 90s.