An Ex-Cop Managed To Rig McDonald's Monopoly And Steal Millions, Here's How
McDonald's lost millions in prizes in the scam.
We all know McDonald’s Monopoly promotion where you try to collect certain ‘house deeds’ for free stuff.
Of course most of us never get more than the occasional free meal. But an ex-cop figured out a way to beat the system when it comes to the game, and he walked away with a massive total in winnings.
And the story its crazy, it involves: cocaine, mobsters and Mormons.
@jamescb13Jerome Jacobsen, a former police officer, worked as the head of a company that helped run the promotion and was in charge of moving the little house deeds to where they would be attached to the food containers for McDonald’s.
But he started stealing winning ones, the first one he stole was worth $25,000 “to see if I could,” he says.
@stevefish69He couldn’t cash them in himself - that would be to obvious - but he gave them to people he knew who would do it for him and let them keep some of the money.
He also had help from a New York strip club owner who had ties to a mob family helping him, as well as cocaine dealers and even a family of Mormons.
The FBI eventually caught on and started investigating Jacobsen, even going so far as to disguise themselves as a film crew from McDonald’s to get inside one of his friends houses to look around.
@tara.twomeyThe FBI also told McDonald’s the fraud was happening but the company kept the promotion running for years in order to help the FBI find out who was responsible.
In total Jacobsen and his crime ring made off with over $24 million in prizes over 12 years.
@lisahudson_21He was eventually caught and sentenced to 37 months in jail.
A real life hamburglar if there ever was one.
Source: US magazine