Police arrest 4 in counterfeit ticket operation

UPDATE: Police arrested four people in connection with a counterfeit ticket operation involving Pittsburgh Penguins Stanley Cup playoff tickets.

Taylor Williams, 28, Shawn Stewart, 18, Gerald Vailes, 45, and Juan Ramirez were arrested on charges of forgery, theft by deception and trademark counterfeiting, city public safety spokeswoman Sonya Toler said in a press release Friday.

During the investigation -- which lasted the entire month of May -- police found 52 counterfeit tickets and more than $2,000 in cash, Toler said.

Police said all four men arrested were from New York.

Williams was arrested in May after a man called police to report that counterfeit tickets were sold to two groups of people, according to a criminal complaint. He recognized the man from when counterfeit tickets were sold to his friend a week earlier.

Police said Taylor Williams allegedly interacted with a man on Craigslist using the name “Joseph Turner.” When they met in Pittsburgh on May 1, four counterfeit Pens tickets were sold for $425 along with a Ticketmaster customer receipt with the name Joseph Turner, the complaint said.

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“There's an event code, but the lady told me it's the wrong code at PPG’s ticket counter,” Keith Juart, who paid for the counterfeit tickets, said. “I was really distraught. My friend was really upset.”

The man who called police took a photo of Williams with his cell phone and sent it to his friend, Juart. Police said Juart positively identified Williams as the man who sold him the counterfeit tickets on May 1.

When Williams was arrested, police said they found him in possession of more than $1,000, 29 counterfeit tickets, 10 receipts and marijuana.

“It was really disheartening, but we learned from the experience,” Juart said. “Pay the extra $20 to $30 for the fees and go through Ticket Exchange and Ticketmaster.”

Cox Media Group