A Washington Nationals fan who bought five World Series tickets from a stranger outside Nats Park for $2,000 got stiffed, when he found out the tickets were fake. Then he got even — and some of his money back — when he pointed out the suspect to police.
D.C. Police said an officer was flagged down outside Nats Park Friday night, before the team’s first home game against the Houston Astros.
The fan told the officer he was approached by two men, who offered to sell five tickets for $400 each, and the fan turned over $2,000 cash. He also snapped a photo of the man who sold him the tickets.
When the tickets were scanned to enter the stadium, an employee told the fan they were fake.
The fan showed the officer the picture he’d taken, and police issued a lookout for a man in a black jacket, black hat and a jacket with the words “Real Tree” on it.
A short time later, another officer responded to reports of two people fighting outside the stadium. That officer recognized the suspect, based on the lookout that had been issued, in a heated argument with the fan who had bought the fake tickets.
According to the police document, the fan confronted the two men who sold him the tickets. One of the sellers gave the fan $1,300, and left the area.
However, the fan told the responding officer the person he was arguing with had the remaining $700 in his possession.
Police arrested 54-year-old Ondre Nelson of West Virginia, and charged him with first-degree fraud, a misdemeanor.
Nelson pleaded not guilty in his first court appearance, and was released until his next hearing, on Nov. 14.
