Taylor Swift ticket scammer steals college student's identity to swindle fans
Kennesaw Police in Georgia are looking for a suspect who allegedly swindled Taylor Swift fans out of hundreds of dollars promising them concert tickets that did not exist. (FOX 5)
A college student in Georgia is warning other "Swifties" to beware of scammers and identity theft before buying last-minute tickets to Taylor Swift's The Eras Tour.
Kennesaw State University student Rachel Anderson said she jumped at the chance to get tickets for a sold-out show after someone who claimed to be in her criminal justice class messaged her through a group chat saying he had an extra ticket.
Taylor Swift performs onstage at the opening night of The Eras Tour at State Farm Stadium in Swift City, Arizona, on March 17, 2023. (John Shearer/Getty Images for TAS Rights Management)
"The Eras Tour is a once in a lifetime," Anderson told FOX 5.
"The Eras Tour is a once in a lifetime."
Her purported classmate requested Anderson's personal information, including her school ID and the pin, along with hundreds of dollars for the ticket.
Hours later, after not receiving the promised tickets, Anderson began getting threatening texts from seemingly random people.
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"They said things like, 'I gave you 500 bucks. Where are my Taylor Swift tickets?" Anderson said.
Ticketmaster ticket for Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour. (Fox News Digital)
Another said, "If I don't get my money back, I am filing a police report, a lawsuit and submitting a complaint to the university."
The college student could not "shake off" the threatening messages, so she contacted local police. The Kennesaw Police Department quickly realized that Anderson's identity had been stolen by her fake criminal justice classmate.
The suspect had allegedly used her personal information to hack into her email and advertise for available Swift tickets.
Taylor Swift performs "Enchanted" onstage at the opening night of The Eras Tour at State Farm Stadium in Swift City, Arizona, on March 17, 2023. (John Sheaerer/Getty Images for TAS Rights Management)
Eager Swifties jumped at the opportunity to participate in the record-breaking stadium tour and shelled out hundreds of dollars for tickets, only to receive nothing in return.
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"He ended up taking over her email and sending out an ad with that contact information for Taylor Swift tickets. Scammed a few people for Taylor Swift tickets when none of them ever existed," Kennesaw Police Officer David Buchanan told FOX 5.
"Scammed a few people for Taylor Swift tickets when none of them ever existed."
Police said similar scams are growing in popularity across the country.
Officials at Georgia Tech University said they have a case that is similar to the case in Kennesaw.
Taylor Swift performs onstage at the opening night of The Eras Tour at State Farm Stadium in Swift City, Arizona, on March 17, 2023. (Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for TAS Rights Management)
Police said scammers know who to target and, right now, they're targeting Swifties.
"The popularity of Taylor Swift, people having problems getting tickets and concerts are selling out quick, so they're taking advantage of that," Buchanan said.
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Anderson said she feels badly for those who got scammed and hopes the suspect is caught by authorities.
Following the incident, authorities warned people to only purchase tickets from official websites.
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