Card companies, the FBI & Fraud

[34swtns]

Re: Card companies, the FBI & Fraud

Well, you have to take athletes' knowledge of their own uniforms very lightly.

Mike Alstott recently told me that the 3 size 48 gamers I own of his couldn't possibly have been his because he "always wore a 52".



He NEVER wore a size 52. EVER.

[Ollie]

Re: Card companies, the FBI & Fraud

Thought you guys might be interested of this video of some guys opening a new product called '2011 Hits Gallery of Awesome"

At least we know the Pedroia Jersey came from Steiners...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=47lx-pJl7Uc&feature=feedu

[Eric]

Re: Card companies, the FBI & Fraud

No response from the card companies. I sent a message to Panini on Twitter today asking for an email address of a contact to ask questions about how they acquire jerseys.

I also stumbled across this

http://paniniamerica.wordpress.com/2011/09/09/hair-raising-history-panini-produces-troy-polamalus-first-on-card-autographs/

Does anyone know how to get in touch with Joe White, who is listed as Panini America’s NFL Acquisition Manager

Anyone know anything about him?
Post here or email me at ecky3@aol.com
Thanks
Eric

@ericstangel on Twitter

[Eric]

Re: Card companies, the FBI & Fraud

Does anyone know if Joe White, Panini America’s NFL Acquisition Manager is the same Joe White who was at one time VP of Historic Auctions? See here...

http://www.gameuseduniverse.com/vb_forum/archive/index.php/t-6245.html

[Eric]

Re: Card companies, the FBI & Fraud

Let me re-phrase the question
Does anyone know if Joe White, Panini America’s NFL Acquisition Manager is the same Joe White who used to work at Donruss Playoff, is the same Joe White who was at one time VP of Historic Auctions which was run by Brad Wells and used as authenticators "Expert Sports Authentication" which included Brad Wells and Bernie Gernay?

Wells and Gernay were among 6 people charged in a scheme to fake "game used" jerseys for the purpose of selling to card companies

http://www.justice.gov/usao/iln/pr/rockford/2011/pr1025_01.pdf

Here is an old article from Beckett

Industry veteran Joe White, formerly of Beckett Publications and Donruss Trading Cards, has accepted a VP position with Historic Auctions, the Seminole, Fla.-based auction house that completed a successful maiden auction last December.

White spent four years with Donruss from 2002 to 2005, where he was charged with acquiring the vast majority of that company’s autographs and game-worn memorabilia. His time there was highlighted by the purchase of a 1925-era Babe Ruth Yankees pinstriped jersey for $265,000 in 2003. Prior to that, White spent five years at Beckett as an assistant price guide editor for Beckett Football.

“I’m proud to be working with a company of Historic Auctions’ caliber,” White says. “They are well respected in our industry and I’m honored to be a part of their team. I look forward to using the experience and knowledge I’ve gained in the game-used memorabilia arena to help Historic grow their burgeoning sports auction business.”

[CollectGU]

Re: Card companies, the FBI & Fraud

Let me re-phrase the question
Does anyone know if Joe White, Panini America’s NFL Acquisition Manager is the same Joe White who used to work at Donruss Playoff, is the same Joe White who was at one time VP of Historic Auctions which was run by Brad Wells and used as authenticators "Expert Sports Authentication" which included Brad Wells and Bernie Gernay?

Wells and Gernay were among 6 people charged in a scheme to fake "game used" jerseys for the purpose of selling to card companies

http://www.justice.gov/usao/iln/pr/rockford/2011/pr1025_01.pdf

Here is an old article from Beckett

Industry veteran Joe White, formerly of Beckett Publications and Donruss Trading Cards, has accepted a VP position with Historic Auctions, the Seminole, Fla.-based auction house that completed a successful maiden auction last December.

White spent four years with Donruss from 2002 to 2005, where he was charged with acquiring the vast majority of that company’s autographs and game-worn memorabilia. His time there was highlighted by the purchase of a 1925-era Babe Ruth Yankees pinstriped jersey for $265,000 in 2003. Prior to that, White spent five years at Beckett as an assistant price guide editor for Beckett Football.

“I’m proud to be working with a company of Historic Auctions’ caliber,” White says. “They are well respected in our industry and I’m honored to be a part of their team. I look forward to using the experience and knowledge I’ve gained in the game-used memorabilia arena to help Historic grow their burgeoning sports auction business.”

Paging Joe White, please pick up line 1. I have someone from Quantico, Virginia that needs to speak with you about all that "experience and knowledge you used to help Historic grow their sports auction business".....

[Eric]

Re: Card companies, the FBI & Fraud

Trying to figure out which card companies may have purchased bad jerseys to include in their cards. None of the companies have admitted to anything.

I have several questions in to Panini and will post the answers as soon as I hear back.

The ASI website is long gone, but you can still look at it in an archived form. Some interesting things.

Background:
ASI- Authentic Sports Inc. was a company owned by Brad Wells. In the indictment, Wells is charged with a scheme to fake game used jerseys and sell to the card companies and consign to auction houses and sell to buyers. Here is the description.

3. The object of the scheme to defraud was to sell, consign, or auction jerseys by falsely and fraudulently representing to the buyers that the jerseys were game used, when in fact, as the defendant well knew, the jerseys were not game used.
4. As part of the scheme to defraud, the defendant and others obtained and caused to be obtained hundreds of jerseys from a variety of sources, including retail sellers.
5. It was also a part of the scheme to defraud that the defendant and others
frequently changed, or caused changes to the jerseys’ appearance by roughening, scuffing, washing, dirtying, or otherwise changing the appearance of the jerseys to make them appear that they had actual “wear and tear.”
6. It was also a part of the scheme to defraud that the defendant and others re-sold, consigned, and auctioned the same jerseys for hundreds of thousands of dollars to sports trading card companies and other buyers by falsely and fraudulently misrepresenting to the buyers that the jerseys were game used, when in fact, as the defendant well knew, the jerseys were not game used.
7. It was also a part of the scheme to defraud that the when the defendant and others re-sold many of these jerseys, they provided or caused to be provided to the buyers, certificates of authenticity that falsely and fraudulently misrepresented that the jerseys were game used jerseys.
8. It was also a part of the scheme to defraud that the defendant frequently re-sold the jerseys, or caused the jerseys to be re-sold in the name of Authentic or Historic.

The entire document can be found here...

http://www.justice.gov/usao/iln/pr/rockford/2011/pr1025_01f.pdf

Wells' case is still pending.

Looking at the Authentic Sports Inc. web page from 2006 (thanks to Wayback Machine) it is interesting to see who ASI lists as their "Friends" on an October 14, 2006 snapshot

http://web.archive.org/web/20061014025925/http://www.authenticsportsinc.com/index.cfm?&fuseaction=main.Friends

Photo 1 lists "A special hello and thanks to our friends at Donruss Playoff."

That photo was listed on their site as early as October 26, 2005 and while some of these pics came and went, it was still up Dec 23, 2007

Could Wells and ASI have sold jerseys to Donruss Playoff?

Photo 2 shows "Sam Newman & Brad Wells pictured in downtown Chicago"

Samantha Newman is listed in this article as "Donruss Acquisitions Manager"

http://www.paniniamerica.net/dspNewsDetail.cfm?nid=298

According to her LinkedIn resume, she has worked for Donruss, Panini and Leaf
Acquisitions
Leaf Trading Cards
August 2011 – Present (4 months)

Licenses Acquisition Manager
Panini America, Inc.
March 2009 – June 2011 (2 years 4 months)

Entertainment Acquisitions Manager
Donruss Playoff
Privately Held; 51-200 employees; Publishing industry
August 2004 – March 2009 (4 years 8 months)

and lists under her summary

"•Obtain memorabilia for trading cards"

http://www.linkedin.com/pub/samantha-newman/5/118/68

Again, could Donruss have purchased questionable jerseys?
(Note- this photo was in the "Friends" section in 10/26/2005, but was taken down by 12/23/2007)

Photo number 3 lists "Brad Horn & Brad Wells"

Does anyone know, is this Brad Horne (name misspelled on the website) who pleaded guilty last week in the same sports memorabilia fraud case?

http://www.justice.gov/usao/iln/pr/rockford/2011/pr1121_01c.pdf

Also interesting to note that in their "Museum" section, the "game-used" Shaun Alexander jersey they have listed for $4000 has the wrong font on the nameplate

http://web.archive.org/web/20060913014337/http://www.authenticsportsinc.com/index.cfm?&fuseaction=Museum.ShowItem&item=712&dept=GJY

It was addressed in this thread at the time...

http://www.gameuseduniverse.com/vb_forum/showthread.php?t=6215&highlight=shaun+alexander

Thoughts?
Eric

[godwulf]

Re: Card companies, the FBI & Fraud

Anybody else remember the guy who took I don't know how many swatches - dozens, maybe even a hundred - from baseball cards and put together a sort of jersey-shaped collage, and tried to sell it on eBay some years back? I always think of it as "Frankenjersey", a name I gave it on another forum. I recall that some folks were all outraged that he'd destroyed the cards to make Frankenjersey, while apparently glossing over what the card companies destroyed to make those cards in the first place. Pretty ironic.

I will buy the occasional "memorabilia" card, if I like the design and it's inexpensive, just like I'd buy (and do buy) an attractive card without something stuck to it. I have exactly zero expectation that the swatch or bat chip or whatever is an authentic anything, and I shop, pay and collect accordingly. Most of the cards I buy cost three or four bucks, occasionally as much as ten; I think I once paid twenty for a very cool-looking three-color Randy Johnson patch card. I honestly don't understand paying big money for these things, regardless of whose stuff they're supposed to contain or how good the provenance.

I'd love to see somebody get ahold of Derek Jeter's (or someone comparable's) trash, and put together some parody "memorabilia" cards. One containing a piece of Jeter's electric bill, or a piece of a Cheetos bag. Even without the actual trash, I'd think someone talented in the photoshop area could have some fun with this idea.

[rj_lucas]

Re: Card companies, the FBI & Fraud

I'd love to see somebody get ahold of Derek Jeter's (or someone comparable's) trash, and put together some parody "memorabilia" cards. One containing a piece of Jeter's electric bill, or a piece of a Cheetos bag. Even without the actual trash, I'd think someone talented in the photoshop area could have some fun with this idea.

Or even someone not talented in Photoshop

[nycpropain]

Re: Card companies, the FBI & Fraud

An athletes opinion on a jersey is next to worthless. Not only do they use hundreds in a career but even when they only wore a few they get it wrong. Look at Mantle and the now infamous #6 jersey. There is video of him saying there is no doubt it was his rookie jersey. Well according to scientist unless somehow they invented a fabric 20 years earlier its impossible.

[godwulf]

Re: Card companies, the FBI & Fraud

Or even someone not talented in Photoshop

Just change the wording to something like "Authentic Game-Ready Snack Bag" and you've got the idea!

[SkubeBats]

Re: Card companies, the FBI & Fraud

Eric,
Any updates you can tell us about??

[Eric]

Re: Card companies, the FBI & Fraud

I just put up in a different thread a story the Chicago Tribune ran about JOSports, the Chicago Bears the NFL and the hobby. According to the piece, two teams are already severing their ties with JOSports.

Still waiting to hear back from Panini. My contact there said it was being passed along to the proper channels. I have since followed up twice and have not gotten a response.
Eric