Carnie at State Fair arrested for carnival fraud

[shadows]

Try the casino's that post the odds.  Some may give you free drinks.  Instead of throwing darts with guidance feathers arranged that keeps them from going in a strait line, take your own darts.  "Hey Rube here is another one." 

[patric]

They arrested two more Carnies last night. The undercover officer asked the Carnie how much it costs to win the big prizes. The carnie said $20. Because the rules of the game have to be posted and no where does it say you can buy a prize, they arrest the carnie.

I can't believe I am taking the side of Carnies, but come on. The deputy offers to buy a prize then arrests him when he agrees.

I feel so much better going to the fair now that I know the deputies are so vigilant in protecting us from people selling stuffed animals without it being expressly written that they can sell stuffed animals.

Again this year:
TULSA --  A Tulsa State Fair worker was arrested for fraud after handing over a Hello Kitty doll to a Tulsa County Sheriff's deputy for $40. Frank Feikema of Houston was booked on a complaint of violating the carnival fraud act.

http://www.newson6.com/story/23560611/hello-kitty-doll-lands-tulsa-state-fair-worker-in-jail

[guido911]

Sheesh, overreact much in here? There are kids playing these games and they are getting ripped off. Should we be ignoring this? Or taking it easy on out of state fraudsters because we know how reliable they will be to appear in an Oklahoma court months down the road.

[RecycleMichael]

The deputies arrest a carny for selling a stuffed doll and you think we are the ones overreacting?

I think guido's lunch money was taken by a carny when he was a child and he wants revenge.

[Ibanez]

Can we somehow get ABLE involved in this to help create the perfect storm of stupid ways to waste law enforcement salaries?

[Gaspar]

Can we somehow get ABLE involved in this to help create the perfect storm of stupid ways to waste law enforcement salaries?

A Smootstorm of stupid ways to wast law enforcement salaries!

[carltonplace]

A Smootstorm of stupid ways to wast law enforcement salaries!

Smootstorm = Gaspar wins the interwebs today.

[patric]

Smootstorm = Gaspar wins the interwebs today.

+1  


In the meantime...

Tulsa woman raising money to bail out crooked carny
(yes, that's the actual headline).  
http://www.krmg.com/news/news/local/tulsa-woman-raising-money-bail-out-crooked-carny/nbBhR

Rosemary Daugherty doesn't think that's right. Daugherty says, "Busted for a Hello Kitty doll? No way!"
Daugherty is helping raise $500 to bail out Feikema. Daugherty says, "You know, your heart just kind of goes out when you see a picture of a kind-faced old man who was busted for something really minor."

[Conan71]

Carnies!

[Gaspar]

There's a lesson for you.  Be "Kind-faced".

[Vashta Nerada]

Can we somehow get ABLE involved in this to help create the perfect storm of stupid ways to waste law enforcement salaries?

While LEOs should report the arrests they make, TCSO took it upon themselves to supply mugshots to the media, who gleefully ran them as if to endorse this heavy-handed tomfoolery.  Maybe a Miss Kitty perp walk was next?

[rdj]

Mug shots are readily available to the public.

Multiple websites make money posting them and then the arrested parties paying them money to remove them.

[Gaspar]

While LEOs should report the arrests they make, TCSO took it upon themselves to supply mugshots to the media, who gleefully ran them as if to endorse this heavy-handed tomfoolery.  Maybe a Miss Kitty perp walk was next?

Public record.  Mugshots, arrest records and other court documents are public record.  Anyone can access them.

[Townsend]

Consumerist picked Hello Kitty-gate up.

http://consumerist.com/2013/10/01/fair-worker-charged-with-fraud-after-giving-players-hello-kitty-dolls-they-didnt-actually-win/

[patric]

The deputies arrest a carny for selling a stuffed doll and you think we are the ones overreacting?
I think guido's lunch money was taken by a carny when he was a child and he wants revenge.

TULSA --  A group of Tulsans has banded together to help a carnival worker put in jail for bending the rules on the midway. Frank Feikema was busted by undercover deputies over the weekend.
Now, a citizens' group has raised the money to bail him out of jail. They are paying bond for a man they've never met.

"Someone being put in jail and a $500 bond for doing something that people do every day, which is exchange goods and services, I thought was ridiculous," said T.C. Ryan.
Deputies posing as fair-goers walked up to Frank Feikema and Jon Morton at the Tulsa State Fair Saturday night. They asked the carnival workers if they could pay to pop a balloon and get any prize they wanted.
Deputies say both the men offered to sell the prizes instead of playing by the rules of the game.
It's illegal in Oklahoma for vendors not to follow the rules of a carnival game. It landed Feikema and Morton in jail.

Morton bonded out over the weekend, but his co-worker stayed behind bars.
"My heart just kind of went out to the guy," said Rosemary Daugherty, who helped raise bond money for Feikema. "We just kind of wanted to help out - that simple."

In one day, the group raised the $500 needed to bail the carnival worker out.
"We just started reaching out to people and started putting the case out there and started talking amongst ourselves and we thought, 'Why don't we just raise the money and bail him out?'" T.C. Ryan said.
"I can understand wanting to protect consumers from fraud, but this was clearly not fraud," he said.

The Tulsa County Sheriff's Office says they'll be doing spot checks throughout the week. "We're going to hold them accountable, and we're going to enforce the rules," said Undersheriff Tim Albin.

The group says they'll try to help Feikema get out of town.