Authorities are filling a blank space in their investigation of a major ticketing scam.
Two people were arrested Feb. 27 for their alleged involvement in stealing and reselling over 900 concert tickets—largely for Taylor Swift’s blockbuster Eras Tour—resulting in a total profit of over $600,000, the Queens District Attorney’s Office shared in a press release March 3.
Tyrone Rose, 20, of Jamaica, and Shamara P. Simmons, 31, of Queens, N.Y., were arraigned on charges of grand larceny in the second degree, computer tampering in the first degree, conspiracy in the fourth degree and computer tampering in the fourth degree. They each face up to 15 years in prison if convicted, per the district attorney.
“According to the charges,” Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said in a statement, “these defendants tried to use the popularity of Taylor Swift’s concert tour and other high-profile events to profit at the [expense] of others.”
Katz said that the two “allegedly exploited a loophole through an offshore ticket vendor,” intercepting and reselling the tickets to yield an “extraordinary profit.”
