By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2024-11-27 16:12:02 | Updated at 2024-11-27 18:47:11
2 hours ago
A Canadian woman was arrested and charged for allegedly defrauding nearly 30 Taylor Swift ticket buyers out of a total $70,000, police said.
Denise Tisor, 43, of Burlington, Ontario, is accused of scaming fans out of thousands of dollars after she used Facebook Marketplace to advertise and sell fraudulent concert tickets for the pop megastar.
Tisor has since been charged with fraud over $5,000, possession of property obtained by crime over $5,000, 32 counts of fraud under $5,000, and 32 counts of possession of property obtained by crime under $5,000, Toronto Police said.
Operating under the alias 'Denise Blackhawk,' she allegedly advertised ticket sales and provided various dates and seat locations for sold-out concerts at Toronto's Rogers Centre.
After the buyer would agree to make a purchase at the price set by Tisor, they would electronically transfer the payment in full.
When inquiring about how to receive the tickets, Tisor would inform the buyer the tickets would not be available to access until days before the event.
When the alleged victims attempted to access their tickets near or on the concert date, the tickets were nowhere to be found.
'On the day of the concert, victims found that the tickets had not been transferred to their accounts,' a statement by the Toronto Police read, adding, 'when victims requested their money back, the accused alleged that the money was gone.'
A Canadian woman was arrested and charged for allegedly defrauding nearly 30 Taylor Swift ticket buyers out of a total $70,000, police said. Pictured: Taylor Swift performs at Rogers Centre stadium in November 2024
Operating under the alias 'Denise Blackhawk,' the woman allegedly advertised ticket sales and provided various dates and seat locations for sold-out concerts at Toronto's Rogers Centre (pictured)
Several victims claim they 'felt confident' that the user would get the tickets because they knew her and had purchased tickets from her in the past, CTV News Toronto reported.
One ticket buyer said she felt a connection with Tisor after buying tickets from her last summer.
She said they would exchange occasional text messages, adding that Tisor even helped her navigate a website to print the tickets to give to her three young daughters, CTV News Toronto reported.
'There were hundreds of us. There are hundreds of us that believed her. And she was that good. It's just how I felt,' she said.
Another concerned victim started to connect the dots to Tisor's alleged scheme, creating a Google document for people who had paid Tisor for fraudulent tickets.
The document tallied the known purchases as more and more victims came forward.
'When you start to see the sheer number of tickets - 420 tickets is a lot of tickets,' the woman, who did not disclose her identity, told CTV News Toronto.
Additional irregularities surfaced as more alleged victims came to light.
'Some [tickets] are sold twice and three times to the same show, same row…the exact same tickets were sold multiple times,' she added.
A total of 28 victims, so far, have been identified as paying for the fraudulent tickets, amounting to just under $70,000, according to police, who believe there may be additional victims.
Last week, Tisor told CTV News Toronto that she, too, was a victim and has filed a police report.
A total of 28 victims, so far, have been identified as paying for the fraudulent tickets, amounting to just under $70,000, according to police, who believe there may be additional victims
An elementary school teacher in Burlington who also claimed she was scammed by the woman said Tisor's own children attended her school
'I was like, I know this woman,' Tammy Allen said. 'Like her kids go to my school.'
Allen added that Tisor told her the tickets came from a corporate connection, but that the money had been sent to a third party who disappeared after receiving the cash.
Toronto Police suspect Tisor's scam began back in August 2023.
She is scheduled to appear before the Ontario Court of Justice on January 10.
The alleged scheme comes as another Canadian family lost out on Taylor Swift tickets that cost them $15,600 USD, after they allegedly purchased fake tickets from an individual broker.
Ottawa mom Mel Keogh purchased 28 tickets for a group of Swiftie family members who had been excited to experience the Toronto Eras Tour show on November 23.
She used an independent ticket broker, which she did not name but said she had used before.
She said everything seemed legitimate during the buying process - as they received confirmation codes and seat numbers by email and she felt they had done their research.
'To break it to the girls that we weren't going - was horrendous,' Keogh told CTV News Ottawa while fighting back tears.
Keogh said her family, including her super-fan daughter Jordan, 15, were devastated by the news after spending weeks making bracelets and choosing outfits.
'(It's) all we've been talking about for over a year,' Mel told CTV News.
'They were absolutely ecstatic. My daughter, I can speak to her specifically, knows every Taylor Swift song, every word, every album, every era, everything.'
Ottawa mom Mel Keogh purchased 28 tickets for a group of Swiftie family members who had been excited to experience the Toronto Eras Tour show on November 23
Keogh said her family, including her super-fan daughter Jordan, 15, were devastated by the news after spending weeks making bracelets and choosing outfits
'To break it to the girls that we weren't going - was horrendous,' Keogh told CTV News Ottawa while fighting back tears.
Keogh said her family, including her super-fan daughter Jordan, 15, were devastated by the news after spending weeks making bracelets and choosing outfits.
'(It's) all we've been talking about for over a year,' Mel told CTV News.
'They were absolutely ecstatic. My daughter, I can speak to her specifically, knows every Taylor Swift song, every word, every album, every era, everything.'
