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Two men face jail over $1.35m concert fraud

Two scammers face up to 20 years in prison after admitting a $1.35 million (€1.25m) fraud over a fake concert scheme in the US.

Terronce Morris, 41, of Missouri City, Texas, and Blake Kelly, 36, of Los Angeles, California, swindled a promoter out of $1.35m between December 2019 and March 2020, under the pretence of financing a music festival purportedly featuring acts such as Justin Bieber, Post Malone and Billie Eilish.

According to the US Attorney’s Office, Southern District of Florida, the pair instead used the money to “enrich themselves and finance a lavish lifestyle for themselves and their accomplices”, spending it on travelling, luxury goods and services, and dining at high-priced restaurants.

Morris and Kelly forged the artists’ signatures to create “several false and fraudulent” performance contracts. Additionally, they had an accomplice pose as Bieber during a video call to trick the victim into believing the singer had agreed to perform at the festival in Texas.

Morris and Kelly pleaded guilty to mail fraud, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft

The victim subsequently sent three wire transfers to Morris and also mailed him a $200,000 cheque made payable to Bieber, which Morris then deposited into his own personal account.

Morris and Kelly pleaded guilty to mail fraud, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft in Miami federal court. The Miami Herald reports the pair were charged in Miami because much of the communication happened while the victim was visiting South Florida.

Morris and Kelly, who will be sentenced in May and March, respectively, face up to 20 years in prison for the conspiracy charge, as well an additional two years in jail for identity theft.

 


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Springsteen Germany gig hit by fake ticket scam

Hundreds of Bruce Springsteen fans were left disappointed after the tickets they bought on secondary platforms for the rocker’s show in Germany turned out to be fake.

T-Online reports that around 300 fans were caught out by the scam for The Boss’ 69,000-cap concert at Munich’s Olympic Stadium with the E Street Band on 23 July. Some people had paid up to €600 for the counterfeit tickets.

Katharina Wenisch, spokesperson for promoter Live Nation GSA, says between 200 and 300 fans were turned away with fake tickets, leading police to be informed.

According to SZ, similar reports were received in Austria regarding Springsteen’s 18 July show at Vienna’s Ernst Happel Stadium.

“The higher the desire, the greater the risk that people will buy on the secondary market if there are no more tickets from the official providers”

“The higher the desire, the greater the risk that people will buy on the secondary market if there are no more tickets from the official providers,” adds Wenisch.

Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band’s 2023 Tour was No.2 in Pollstar‘s mid-year rankings, behind only Taylor Swift, after grossing US$142.6 million (€129m) from 673,277 ticket sales in the first six months of this year. The average ticket price was $211.80.

Ticketing for the run was subject to controversy before it even began after individual tickets reached more than $5,000 via Ticketmaster’s market-based platinum pricing model when the first wave of US tour dates went on sale last summer.

The backlash prompted the 73-year-old’s manager Jon Landau to defend the pricing, insisting it was in line with shows for acts of a similar stature, while Springsteen himself told Rolling Stone: “Ticket buying has gotten very confusing, not just for the fans, but for the artists also. And the bottom line is that most of our tickets are totally affordable.”

 


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K-pop agencies’ warning over fake Fest World Tour

K-pop giants SM Entertainment and HYBE have warned fans about a fake event called Fest World Tour, which falsely advertised a number of their clients.

The tour claims to feature Enhypen, Mirae, WayV, NCT Dream and Seventeen at stadiums across Asia later this year, reports Soompi.

However, the management companies have each issued statements denouncing the announcement is a scam.

“It has come to our attention that an organisation has mentioned our artists NCT Dream and WayV, saying that they are participating in an event in Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, and Thailand,” says SM True.

We wish to announce to the public that this information is misleading and incorrect. We would like to emphasise that our artists, NCT Dream and WayV, will not be participating in that event. We would like to ask the public not to respond to these schemes.”

We will take legal actions against such illegal and unauthorised attempts that infringe artist IP. We will continue to protect our artists’ rights

Belift LAB and Pledis Entertainment, which are both under the HYBE banner, have also put out similar statements and vow to take legal action.

“Any external event Enhypen participates is jointly announced by Belift LAB and the event organisers followed by discussions between both parties. Event organisers or hosts do not announce an event without an official announcement of Enhypen’s official channels. An unauthorised event that infringe Enhypen’s intellectual property has been announced online.

“We would also like to inform you that we will take legal actions against such illegal and unauthorised attempts that infringe artist IP. We will continue to protect our artists’ rights.”

Pledis has advised fans to request refunds from the purported organiser immediately if they have already purchased tickets.

 


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Scam alert: Fraudsters offer fake Radiohead dates

Scam artists have been posing as 13 Artists founder and agent Charlie Myatt, claiming to offer promoters 2023 North America tour dates for Radiohead.

The scam email appears to be sent from Myatt’s correct email address but the sender asks recipients to reply to a bogus email address – [email protected] – that does not belong to him.

The email, titled RADIOHEAD – World Tour – North America 2023, reads: “RADIOHEAD are going to tour North America in 2023. Tour Period – July 15th, 2023 – November 30th, 2023. Due to a high volume of shows already on the books, a few time periods are available for bookings. Please contact us for more details and avails!”

A representative from 13 Artists told IQ they became aware of the issue on 2 November when Myatt began receiving bouncebacks from the phishing emails.

A number of promoters also got in touch with the Brighton-based booking agency after they received the phoney offer.

13 Artists was the subject of a similar scam in 2019, which saw a promoter send money for what they thought was a legit booking with the company.

If you become aware of a scam email or scheme, please get in touch and IQ will help raise awareness to the broader live music business.

Such scams had become relatively commonplace prior to the pandemic, with fraudsters posing as the representatives of major artists, including Adele, Ariana Grande, System of a Down, Beyoncé, Mark Knopfler and Eminem, emailing concert promoters and asking for deposits in exchange for non-existent live dates.

The sharp increase previously led the UK’s Entertainment Agents’ Association to issue a checklist, urging promoters to adopt the following steps if unsure of an agent’s identity:

1. Check the email address is correct – in particular the email domain – and if in any doubt call the agency to confirm it. Do not use the telephone number on the email
2. Check the artist’s website for any conflicting touring plans
3. Make sure you have full contact details of the agent with which you are working and speak to them on the phone at least once
4. Before sending a deposit, call the agency to confirm the booking and check their account details
5. Check with promoters in other markets to verify the artist is touring in that region at that time
6. If an offer is accepted and seems too good to be true, it probably is

Last year, a woman admitted scamming a charity out of $100,000 by posing as a booking agent for artists including Bruno Mars, Justin Timberlake, Drake and Ed Sheeran. Atlanta, Georgia-based Carissa Scott pleaded guilty to one count of fraud following a hearing in a New York federal court.

Under the name Canvas Media Group, Scott and a fellow defendant were charged with conspiring to defraud investors in events including a December 2019 benefit concert for the Sandy Hook Promise Foundation, set up by relatives of victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.

Prosecutors said Canvas Media “falsely represented that they could book top-tier musical acts to perform at the concert”, and sent organisers a contract asking for $500,000 for his performance and a $275,000 deposit. One investor in the benefit show subsequently sent a $100,000 partial deposit to the scammers.

If you become aware of a scam email or scheme, please get in touch and IQ will help raise awareness to the broader live music business.

 


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Scam artists offer fake Ariana Grande tour dates

Scam artists have been posing as Ariana Grande’s agents, claiming to offer 2022 European tour dates for the singer.

In an email seen by IQ, fraudsters purporting to represent the singer state that she is “going to tour Europe in support of her forthcoming album which is scheduled to drop on July 15, 2022”.

Demands include 20 single rooms in a 5* hotel, and 10 single rooms and 15 double rooms in a 4* hotel for a travelling party of “60 Peoples” (sic).

Inviting promoters to “please send us your offer” for the star, who is a client of CAA, it adds: “We look forward to receiving your availabilities for this period so that we can put together the best possible tour schedule to deliver Ariana’s show to her fans.”

The email is headed: “ARIANA GRANDE – WICKED TOUR 2022”.

A sharp increase led the UK’s Entertainment Agents’ Association to issue a checklist for promoters

Such scams had become relatively commonplace prior to the pandemic, with fraudsters posing as the representatives of major artists, including Adele, System of a Down, Beyoncé, Mark Knopfler and Eminem, emailing concert promoters and asking for deposits in exchange for non-existent live dates.

The sharp increase led the UK’s Entertainment Agents’ Association to issue a checklist, urging promoters to adopt the following steps if unsure of an agent’s identity:

1. Check the email address is correct – in particular the email domain – and if in any doubt call the agency to confirm it. Do not use the telephone number on the email
2. Check the artist’s website for any conflicting touring plans
3. Make sure you have full contact details of the agent with which you are working and speak to them on the phone at least once
4. Before sending a deposit, call the agency to confirm the booking and check their account details
5. Check with promoters in other markets to verify the artist is touring in that region at that time
6. If an offer is accepted and seems too good to be true, it probably is

Last November, a woman admitted scamming a charity out of $100,000 by posing as a booking agent for artists including Bruno Mars, Justin Timberlake, Drake and Ed Sheeran. Atlanta, Georgia-based Carissa Scott pleaded guilty to one count of fraud following a hearing in a New York federal court.

Under the name Canvas Media Group, Scott and a fellow defendant were charged with conspiring to defraud investors in events including a December 2019 benefit concert for the Sandy Hook Promise Foundation, set up by relatives of victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.

Prosecutors said Canvas Media “falsely represented that they could book top-tier musical acts to perform at the concert”, and sent organisers a contract asking for $500,000 for his performance and a $275,000 deposit. One investor in the benefit show subsequently sent a $100,000 partial deposit to the scammers.

 


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Eventbrite: ‘No evidence’ of vaccine scams in Florida

Ticketing firm Eventbrite, best known for its global self-service event platform and club ticketing business in the US, has said there is no evidence its platform is being used to scam people in Florida, where officials are employing it to book appointments for Covid-19 vaccinations.

Following reports of people setting up fake events on Eventbrite that charge a fee for vaccination slots, Florida legislators are fast-tracking a bill that would make it a felony (ie a serious crime) to target people with bogus event listings, reports Tampa’s ABC Action News. “We want to send a very clear message that if you do that, if you stand in the way of a vulnerable population and a vaccine that they want to get, we are coming for you,” says Chris Sprowls, speaker of the Florida House of Representatives. “And when we do come for you, there will be handcuffs that will be involved.”

The use of Eventbrite is one of a number of novel methods local authorities in the US are using to get Covid-19 vaccines to citizens, with survey site SurveyMonkey and “companies like Google and Apple” also providing vaccine booking facilities, according to ABC News.

In Florida, Eventbrite has attracted the attention of the state’s attorney-general, Ashley Moody, who warned locals in a ‘consumer alert’ that scammers allegedly are using the platform “to pose as county health departments and take or attempt to take payments in exchange for Covid-19 vaccine appointments.”

“We have determined people mistakenly created new event listings when they meant to sign up for a time slot”

However, a spokesperson for the company says an internal investigation found no evidence of the scams Moody describes, with several unofficial event listings, some of which included a fee, the result of “user error” rather than fraudulent activity.

“Our team has thoroughly investigated and not found any evidence of vaccine registration events being created with the intent to scam people. We have confirmed the unofficial event listings in question, some which included a fee, were the result of user error. More specifically, we have determined people mistakenly created new event listings when they meant to sign up for a time slot.

“We recognise this has caused confusion and have published a guide on how to sign up for a time slot on Eventbrite. Additionally, we are continuing to closely monitor and remove any unofficial listings.

“We encourage anyone who finds potentially unofficial vaccine event listings on our platform to notify us. This resource helps people identify and report unofficial vaccination events, which can be done through our report this event feature, located at the bottom of every event listing on Eventbrite.

“Covid-19 vaccine distribution is a critical initiative, and we are actively exploring how our platform can best support the effort to increase access to vaccines.”

 


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Streaming scams target live music fans

A host of new streaming scams have cropped up in the past few months, with fraudsters setting up phoney Facebook pages and listing non-existent live streams in a bid to access personal information.

Streaming – be it of live performances, recorded music, films or television shows – has been an important part of accessing entertainment during lockdown, as music venues and cinemas remain shuttered and festivals are cancelled.

Criminals have capitalised on the increased time spent online, as well as the novelty of the accessing content in this way for many, and the uncertainty that has come with the Covid-19 crisis in general, to successfully target consumers across all sectors of society.

Major streaming services, including Netflix and Spotify, have been targeted by fraudsters, who have sent official-looking emails asking users to update their payment information.

Live music fans are also being targeted, with some scammers directing traffic away from legitimate live streams to their own page, in a bid to pocket “donations” or “tips” given to performers, and others posting false listings of livestreamed gigs and festivals to get hold of personal information.

Two such pages, one posing as Universal Music Group (@GroupMusicUniversal) and the other going under the name of Live Concert Music, list upcoming live streams for Rolling Loud Portugal, Michael Kiwanuka and Jill Scott, Cage the Elephant, Montreux Jazz Festival, Nickelback, Robbie Williams, Brad Paisley and Dave Matthews Band, among others.

Almost all streams are listed as happening on the same day, with links landing on pages for sites called Eventflix and Stream Concert. A section below the supposed streams show comments from “fans” – almost identical for each one – discussing the lack of lag, commending the quality of the stream and recommending the service to others.

“There is more opportunity for criminals to try and trick people into parting with their money at a time when they are anxious and uncertain about the future”

Viewers are encouraged to register for free in order to view the content, leading to a page asking for contact details and other information.

Another kind of streaming scam has seen hackers hijack YouTube channels to impersonate Elon Musk’s SpaceX channel, generating around $150,000 in Bitcoins.

The creation of unofficial event pages on Facebook is not a new phenomenon in the live events world. In 2018, IQ reported on a trend which saw phoney pages set up to drive fans to secondary ticketing sites, rather than official sellers. Email scams have also targeted fans, agents, promoters, festival organisers, artists and others for years.

The increase in streaming scams responds directly to the current climate, as more and more turn to online services – many for the first time – to experience live events.

“As more people stay indoors and work from computers and laptops at home, there is more opportunity for criminals to try and trick people into parting with their money at a time when they are anxious and uncertain about the future,” City of London police commander Karen Baxter, national co-ordinator of economic crime warned consumers at the end of March, just weeks into the coronavirus lockdown.

“It is important that we continue to raise awareness of fraud and protect ourselves, and the vulnerable people in our communities, the best we can.”

A further warning was issued by the National Trading Standards in the UK today, as the easing of lockdown measures is expected to bring on a surge of scam telephone calls in particular.

Members of the public are encouraged to protect themselves against scams by joining Friends Against Scams, a free online initiative that provides training to help people take a stand against scams.

 


This article forms part of IQ’s Covid-19 resource centre – a knowledge hub of essential guidance and updating resources for uncertain times.

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Woman indicted for Taiwanese promoter scam

The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office has reportedly charged a woman with fraud and forgery, for posing as a promoter for concerts by K-Pop groups, Mandopop star Andy Lau and Singaporean musician JJ Lin.

According to the Taipei Times, Chao Chung-ling is accused of defrauding six people who invested TWD 4.84 million (US$159,000) in her business after she claimed she was promoting a concert by Lau in Taiwan last year.

The individual in question, reportedly the proprietor of Taipei-based agency FD Model Co, had previously received TWD 4m ($132,000) from separate investors for a concert tour by K-pop band VIXX.

The report also states that Chao sought an investment of TWD 800,000 ($26,000) in January last year, again claiming she was putting on an Andy Lau show in Taiwan.

The Asian live industry has seen its fair share of scams in recent years

Chao was also allegedly sued last year by claimants who said they lost TWD 40m ($1.3m) on a concert she claimed she was promoting for K-pop superstars BTS. In another claim, an investor said he gave Chao TWD 6m ($198,000) for a series of dates by Taiwanese hip-hop band 911.

The Asian live industry has seen its fair share of scams in recent years. Last year, promoters, festivals and venues across Asia were contacted by bogus ‘agents’ claiming to represent artists such as Lady Gaga, Eminem, Rihanna and System of a Down.

More recently, several South Korean industry insiders were accused of defrauding promoters and investors of more than $4m by posing as representatives of BTS’ management company, Big Hit Entertainment.

Similar scams targeted European promoters in 2018, which saw fraudsters pose as representatives of Adele, Justin Timberlake, Beyoncé and more.

Photo: Huandy618/Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0) (cropped)

 


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Bogus booking agents arrested in New York

Two women who allegedly scammed a charity out of hundreds of thousands of dollars by posing as booking agents for artists including Bruno Mars, Justin Timberlake, Drake and Ed Sheeran have been arrested by police in New York.

Under the name Canvas Media Group, Nancy Jean and Carissa Scott conspired to defraud investors in events including a benefit concert for the Sandy Hook Promise Foundation, set up by relatives of victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, according to prosecutors.

As alleged in the US district attorney for eastern New York’s complaint against the pair, Jean and Scott were contacted last September by the organiser of a concert at the 64,000-seat Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, in aid of the Sandy Hook Promise Foundation.

Prosecutors say Canvas Media “falsely represented that they could book top-tier musical acts to perform at the concert, and provided the investor with a contract for a total fee of [US]$500,000 that purported to commit Timberlake to perform”.

One investor in the benefit show then sent a $100,000 deposit to Jean and Scott, which they allegedly later used for personal expenses or withdrew as cash.

“Subsequently, when Timberlake’s social media account failed to mention or promote the event, the investor requested confirmation that Timberlake was booked,” the complaint continues. “In response, the investor received a telephone call from an unidentified individual who falsely claimed to be Timberlake’s manager. The unidentified individual stated that Timberlake would perform at the concert, but that the fee would have to be raised to between $800,000 and $1 million.”

“Simple stealing is bad enough, this is worse”

When the investor baulked at the increased ‘fee’, Canvas Media said Bruno Mars could perform instead of Timberlake for $600,000.

Scott also reportedly claimed she could book other top-tier artists for the concert, including Drake, Flo Rida and Ed Sheeran.

“As alleged, the defendants viewed a fundraiser for a charity formed to protect children from gun violence as an opportunity to commit fraud and line their own pockets,” comments Richard Donoghue, United States attorney for the eastern district of New York. “Simple stealing is bad enough, this is worse.”

According to the New York Post, Jean and Scott have been banned from working as agents or promoters while awaiting trial.

William Sweeney Jnr, assistant director in charge of the FBI’s New York field office, says: “Nancy Jean and Carissa Scott may have been able to realise a quick profit as a result of their alleged fraudulent booking scheme, but not long after their illegal activity took off they landed in New York to face federal criminal charges.

“It’s discouraging to think these defendants were willing to defraud an investor supporting a charity foundation. Fortunately, the FBI doesn’t entertain such activity.”

Justin Timberlake is no stranger to agency scams, having been one of a number of high-profile artists targeted by scammers pretending to be his representative, alongside artists such as Adele, Eminem and Mark Knopfler.

 


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Korean ‘industry pros’ implicated in $4m K-pop scam

Several South Korean industry insiders have been accused of defrauding promoters and investors out of more than ₩5 billion (US$4 million) by posing as representatives of BTS’s management company, Big Hit Entertainment.

According to The Fact (via Allkpop), a total of 11 music companies, primarily small and medium-sized promoters, were targeted by concert professionals ‘K’ and ‘D’, who forged Big Hit contracts and took ‘deposits’ – ranging from ₩150m ($130,000) to ₩1.4bn ($1.2m) – for non-existent BTS shows.

In one typical example, The Fact reports, an Indonesian promoter put down a deposit for a BTS concert due to take place some time between November 2019 and February 2020. The ‘fee’ for the show is listed as US$2.8m, with the number of concertgoers estimated at 50,000.

Other individuals involved in the alleged scam include a famous actor, ‘A’, and their manager, ‘Seok’, who posed to Chinese investors as a Big Hit Entertainment board member.

One of the victims, ‘L’, says: “The manager, ‘Seok’, deceived them by saying that he holds the rights to distribute BTS transportation cards at ‘C Entertainment’, an agency created by him and ‘A’. The Chinese investors believed the stories of the famous Korean actor and his manager and invested about ₩800m [$685,000] in distributing the fake cards.”

“The Chinese investors believed the stories … and invested about ₩800m”

Other victims include companies based in Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand and Hong Kong.

The Hong Kong company, reports Soompi, realised they had been scammed after a concert due to take place in the city-state did not go ahead.

‘K’ was reportedly arrested on 9 November and is being held in a detention centre in Seoul. Police believe he has a history of posing as other Korean artists and their representatives, including Exo, Super Junior, Lee Min Ho and Sistar.

In a statement, a spokesperson for Big Hit says the company was unaware the scammers were posing as its employees. “We did not learn about this ‘fake document’ until we received photos of the reports,” it reads. “The contracts depicted in the photos [obtained by The Fact] are fake documents, and have nothing to do with Big Hit Entertainment. When we confirm specific details of such crimes and damages caused by these crimes, we will take legal action.”

The scam appears to be a more sophisticated version of those employed against promoters in Europe, who have been targeted by bogus emails purporting to come from leading booking agents.

 


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