Man Fakes His Own Kidnapping to Avoid Paying Super Bowl Bet
We've all made bets. Sometimes it's as simple as "I bet I can beat you to that tree!" Some are bets for status like "I bet you a beer I can get her number!" Some are friendly, some are heated. But when it starts to get into the $50,000 range, you might want to have a backup plan, you know ... in case you lose.
Robert Brandel of New York's backup plan was to allegedly fake his own kidnapping. After losing a $50,000 bet dealing with the most recent Super Bowl, he came up with his scheme, according to investigators. Police found and arrested the 60-year-old with his hands and feet wrapped in duct tape, covered by a tarp in the back of his pickup. He told police he was abducted at gunpoint earlier in the week by two men who robbed, threatened and held him hostage for three days.
After further investigation and interviews, authorities concluded that his kidnappers were not part of his Super Bowl betting squares as he had said, but that this was completely made up. He himself was running a $50,000 Super Bowl pool where he was making up names & "hoping to win and take most of the winnings," according to a police statement.
New York State Police Trooper James O'Callaghan told Buffalo, N.Y.'s WKBW, that investigators were tipped off when Brandel was found clean-shaven, even though he had been held hostage for multiple days. Brandel was charged with falsely reporting an incident, a scheme to defraud as well as a felony for good measure.
It just goes to show, if you're going to do any type of betting on sporting events, stick to the fun bets, especially like the ones here at KATS-FM. The 2019 Million Dollar Bracket Challenge, for example.