Authorities have arrested two people accused of scamming Taylor Swift fans by stealing and reselling nearly 900 digital concert tickets. The suspects made over $600,000 by taking advantage of a security flaw in a ticket vendor’s system.
According to Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz, two insiders at a third-party company linked to StubHub stole ticket links and shared them with their partners in Queens. The stolen tickets, which included ones for Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran, and Adele concerts, were then sold for high prices.
Katz said, “These defendants used the popularity of Taylor Swift’s tour and other big events to make money unfairly.” (via Deadline)
The suspects, Tyrone Rose and Shamara P. Simmons, now face serious charges, including grand larceny, computer tampering, and conspiracy. If found guilty, they could spend between three to 15 years in prison.
StubHub said they quickly reported the fraud to their customer service provider, Sutherland Global Services, and worked with law enforcement to fix the issue. The company assured customers, “At StubHub, keeping our platform safe and secure is our top priority.” (via Variety). Authorities are still investigating to see if more people were involved in the scam.
