Police said Thursday they are hot on the trail of the Baltimore Ravens fan who bilked a family of San Francisco 49ers faithful out of $5,900 for Super Bowl tickets -- and then taunted them with "Go Ravens!" notes.
"They're working several good leads, some solid leads," said Sgt. J.D. Nelson of the Alameda County Sheriff's Office, adding they are working closely with authorities in Florida, where the alleged scammer lives.
Hayward area resident Sharon Osgood, 49, said after talking with a detective that she was feeling much better about her case.
"I'm just ecstatic," she added. "I just hope they get the dirtbag."
Last week, Osgood, her boyfriend and other family members, all 49ers season-ticket
holders, wired $5,900 to a man they met on Craigslist who said he was a Ravens season-ticket holder who couldn't use his four Super Bowl tickets because his wife was 8 months pregnant. On Monday, the couple received a FedEx package void of tickets but with the taunt "Go Ravens! LOL!" typed on the outside and inside of the envelope.
The story made national news when this newspaper published the account. On Tuesday, both Ticketmaster and the 49ers offered the family free tickets to Sunday's big game in New Orleans and a lunch with NFL legend Troy Aikman -- along with a follow-up offer from StubHub on Wednesday.
The family arrived in New Orleans on Thursday after a 36-hour, nonstop ride in their RV. They are set to receive four
tickets from Ticketmaster CEO Nathan Hubbard on Friday and another free ticket for a fifth family member is coming courtesy of the 49ers.
Among the possible evidence for police: Osgood provided investigators with the FedEx envelope -- which includes the scammers name, phone number and address -- and the record of the wire transaction. If he walked into the credit union or used an ATM to withdraw the cash, it would have been captured on camera.
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Super Bowl Ticket Scam: Detectives on Trail of 'Dirtbag' Who Ripped Off 49ers Fans
Feb. 1, 2013
Mike Rosenberg, San Jose Mercury News
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Source: (c)2013 the San Jose Mercury News (San Jose, Calif.) Distributed by MCT Information Services
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