MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Despite the layers of security at the Miami Stadium during the FIFA World Cup, deputies reported finding two fraudsters who managed to run a scam during the match between Brazil and Scotland, records show.
Kareem Thomas and Stanthony Ballard used “fraudulent credentials” to sneak into the 6 p.m. event in Miami Gardens with more than 65,000 ticket holders on Wednesday, according to deputies.
Thomas, 38, and Ballard, 43, both from Georgia, also used the fake credentials to charge $1,000 per person for access to the Hardrock Stadium, according to a Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office deputy’s report.
Four witnesses who were at the stadium’s Section 135 at 6:35 p.m. on Wednesday told deputies that they had paid Thomas, of Macon, and Ballard, of Atlanta, who showed the fake credentials, according to the report.
Thomas and Ballard had “previously been ejected” from the stadium and “were also criminally trespassing” and ”interfering with the normal and safe operations of the event," a deputy wrote, according to the report.
Miami-Dade corrections booked Thomas and Ballard on Wednesday night at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center, according to inmate records.
Thomas and Ballard each faced two felony charges: Uttering a forged instruments and interference with a sporting event. They also had a bench warrant for business conduct without a license. Their bond was $3,500 each.
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