The great Wilmington Phillies ticket heist of 2013
A man named Scott Lascala received the tickets, signed for them, and then made some poor decisions.
The great Wilmington Phillies ticket heist of 2013
Justin Klugh, Assistant Sports Producer
It's been realtively calm in Wilmington, DE this year. It was in the "Chemical Capital of the World" that a former Olympian recently retired to a life of quiet glove-making. Nearby, the state received its first National Monument - am 1,100 acre chunk of land that extends right up to Philadelphia's doorsteps.
But as far as heart-pounding criminal heists, there have been a frighteningly short supply.
Until now.
Wilmington's News Journal was ready for Phillies season - their recent purchase of 324 game tickets and 81 parking passes was more than indicative of this fact. All summer long, it would be a simple jaunt across the Woodlawn property to Philadelphia city limits, where apparently the paper would be making use of hundreds of tickets.
Days passed and the tickets never arrived. Well, they arrived, but not to the offices of the News Journal. No, on February 22, they showed up six miles down the road, under the simple red awning at 1209 Orange Street.
Here, a man named Scott Lascala received them, signed for them, and made some poor decisions.
On March 9, a News Journal employee discovered that a Craigslist ad selling Phillies tickets bore a striking resemblance to the tickets that never arrived at their offices. A couple of police officers disguised themselves as Phillies fans - presumably showing up at the man's apartment at Lea Boulevard and North Market Street with bad attitudes and a sack full of batteries - and proceeded to get to the bottom of things.
The man from the ad explained he had received the tickets from a man named "Scott Lascala," who had told him that they were a gift from his boss. Unless Lascala's boss was a parcel delivery person who infrequently showed up at his office, this was determined to be a lie.
The police showed up at 1209 Orange Street and apprehended Lascala with little incident, after he had already given out or sold a portion of the tickets. Meanwhile, the Phillies flagged the tickets as invalid and natural order was restored to North Delaware.
Lascala was back on the streets after posting a $2,000 bond, but the damage has been done - anyone currently holding tickets for Citizen Bank Park's Diamond Club, Section G, Row 12, Seats 7, 8, 9, and 10 is at risk of being one of his victims.
Meanwhile, life in Wilmington returns to normal as poker games go on for longer than ever and banks acquire other banks. We can only hope Lascala has learned his lesson, and isn't waiting by the door at 1209 Orange Street with a pen and a smile, ready for the next delivery miscue to continue his terrifying crime spree...
Philly sports fans: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3D5M3jKz4A— STEPHEN1988- Hey Inquirer/Daily News...maybe you wouldn't go bankrupt if you stopped condescending to your readers. Sack full of batteries...way to perpetuate a stereotype jerkface.
When you degrade and write things like those written above you will lose readers and go bankrupt. You will also go bankrupt if you give your product away for free, even if thats the value of it.— Joe Devola - That article is badly-written, choppy and doesn't always make sense. Where have all the editors gone?— Jen D
- Why do newspapers persist in publishing blogs whilst passing them off as legitimate news stories? Leave the blogs to the housewives and blowhards, and instead stick to reporting.
- thanks for including the link to a news website— Iknowyourider
- What do you expect from a guy that's been out of college for only 3 years, and had a job serving coffee last year while writing for a local entertainment rag?— Bob1
- Yet he's already zoomed through the ranks to become an Assistant Sports Producer. That's quite a feat in such a short time. I mean, really, how many other people on the staff are Assistant Sports Producers? Oh, ummmm, hmmm, everybody. Never mind.
It seems that they need fewer Assistant Sports Producers and more trained Editors (and proofreaders--"am 1,100 acre").— Tatt2 - Wow. That is one poorly-written, rambling article. Written late after a night of drinking?— patrick125
- Where are they finding these "writers"? What has a bagful of batteries to do with anything? Why were the tickets delivered to the the man who sold them? No wonder subscriptions are lagging for these newspapers. Who's doing the hiring anyway? They should be looking for a good proofreader.— POF
