Cosmetics Heir on Trial for Rape Vanishes

Jan. 9 -- Life used to be good for 39-year-old Andrew Luster, who spent most of his time riding the waves outside his beachfront bungalow, enjoying the palm trees, the California surf and a generous trust fund.

But now Luster is the subject of a worldwide manhunt. The FBI and the Ventura County Sheriff's Department are pursuing the heir of cosmetics mogul Max Factor, who failed to appear at his rape trial Monday.

Since mid-December, Luster had been standing trial on charges of drugging and raping three women, incidents he videotaped. If convicted of all charges, he could face life in prison. During a holiday break from the trial, Luster disappeared.

Ventura County Sheriff Bob Brooks said his department knew Luster was a flight risk and tried to prevent his escape from the trial.

"We asked for a high bail, and the appellate court lowered it to $1 million," Brooks told ABCNEWS' Good Morning America. "That was a bad decision in hindsight."

Great-Granddad Was Makeup King

Luster is the great-grandson and heir of cosmetics tycoon Max Factor, and his net worth is estimated at over $30 million. Starting in the early days of Hollywood, Max Factor built a fortune when he invented the pancake makeup worn by all the stars.

With a multimillion-dollar inheritance, Luster didn't have to work. Instead, he surfed, hung out in nightclubs and seduced young women, who were drawn to his wealth and good looks.

The case against him began two and a half years ago, when a 21-year-old college student told authorities that Luster drugged and raped her after she met him at a bar. He is also charged with drugging and raping two other young women he met in the Santa Barbara area.

One woman, who authorities say was 17 when Luster filmed her as she was passed out in his bed, testified that she had no memory of the encounter.

"It was very disgusting to me," the now-23-year-old woman said of seeing the tape.

Though he currently faces 87 charges including rape, sodomy and poisoning, Luster had been free on bail, living under electronic supervision in his Muscle Shoals beach house.