Detroit Lions ticket scams: Fan loses $400 to Facebook scammer

Lions fan scammed out of hundreds in fake ticket sale

Tim Paletti was scammed out of $400 when someone on Facebook marketplace took his money, but never sent him the Lions tickets that he purchased as a present for his son.

NEW BALTIMORE, Mich. (FOX 2) - A dad just hoping to take his son to see the Detroit Lions is now out hundreds of dollars after he fell victim to a Facebook scammer.

With tickets going for hundreds of dollars, Tim Paletti wasn't able to get them through ticket resale websites. So, when the New Baltimore dad discovered a good deal on Facebook, he messaged the person selling tickets in hopes that his son could see the Lions play.

"It looked like a normal suburban mom who had kids. (I) thought everything was normal, the picture of her, and I'm assuming her husband, wearing Lions gear," he said of the seller's profile.

Paletti said the person was offering tickets for $175 plus a parking pass for $50, so he sent them a Venmo payment of $400 to secure two tickets. However, there was an issue with the payment. That problem was finally resolved, and the payment went through, but Paletti still didn't have his tickets.

After hours of not responding to messages, Paletti started becoming suspicious of the seller.

"I kept thinking this just doesn't seem right. I know better than this. It's too good to be true," he said.

Eventually, Paletti reached out to the seller again after seeing that the person was still advertising the tickets for sale. That's when the seller blocked him.

"I know better than this, but I was blinded by wanting to get my son these tickets," Paletti said. "As frustrated and upset as I am, I'm just more mad at myself."

Paletti filed a police report and reached out to Venmo in hopes of getting his money back.

Facebook Marketplace safety tips

Facebook provides tips for buying and selling on the website safely:

Double-check deals that seem too good to be true. Scammers may try to use underpriced items to lure buyers into a scam.
Do not send deposits for high value items (apartments, cars, etc.) without confirming that they’re real first. When possible, try to confirm the existence and ownership (example: a pink slip for a car) of the item(s) in person or over a video chat before sending payments.
Always verify the tracking numbers that you see on Marketplace on the shipping company’s website, and make sure that the delivery address and shipping information is correct.
Review the seller’s profile to learn more about the seller. On their profile, you can see ratings and reviews from other buyers, friends you may have in common, view their other listings, and review their Marketplace activity.Even if a sale is not from Marketplace, reviewing a person's profile can provide details that reveal if the page is fake.Check the page's location.Look at how new the person's page is. Occasionally, the page will have posts with a clock symbol near the date a post was made. This means a post was backdated when it was posted, a tactic often used to make it look like a page is older than it really is.
Even if a sale is not from Marketplace, reviewing a person's profile can provide details that reveal if the page is fake.Check the page's location.Look at how new the person's page is. Occasionally, the page will have posts with a clock symbol near the date a post was made. This means a post was backdated when it was posted, a tactic often used to make it look like a page is older than it really is.
Check the page's location.
Look at how new the person's page is. Occasionally, the page will have posts with a clock symbol near the date a post was made. This means a post was backdated when it was posted, a tactic often used to make it look like a page is older than it really is.
Eligible purchases made with checkout on Facebook are covered by Purchase Protection. Items exchanged in-person using cash or other person-to-person payment methods are not eligible.
When buying in person, before completing the transaction, be sure to inspect the items closely to make sure that they are real and work.