A BYTE OUT OF HISTORY
The 1976 Stings: The Case of the Unsatisfied Customers
07/31/06
A
company named PFF, Inc. opened its warehouse
for business in northeast Washington in October
1975. The non-descript office equipment supplier
quickly had a steady stream of customers
coming through its doors.
Not long after, the brains behind PFF opened
a second company, the H & H Trucking
Service—a subsidiary of GYA, Inc.—on
12 th street, a bit northwest of their first
venture. Soon it, too, had its share of customers.
Even though both businesses prospered,
neither one lasted long. PFF closed its doors
within four months. GYA shut down the following
July. PFF, at least, decided to throw a party
on its last night to recognize dozens of
its best clients.
Did the owners of PFF and GYA squander
their profits? Did rampant inflation run
them out of business?
No, they had a different bottom line. PFF,
Inc. actually stood for Police-FBI Fence, Incognito.
And GYA? “Got Ya Again.”
To law enforcement officials, the operations
were known as Sting I and Sting II. Working
undercover, agents of the FBI and detectives
of the Washington Metropolitan Police Department
(MPD) had created the businesses as fronts
to receive stolen merchandise, especially
government business machines. (To prevent
entrapment, we didn’t encourage anyone
to commit a crime and turned away dozens
of offers to steal for us).
More than a million dollars worth
of merchandise came pouring in: television
sets, vehicles of all kinds (cars, trucks,
motorcycles, and bicycles), guns, typewriters,
stereo equipment, even stolen checks and
a bearskin rug. All bought at bargain prices.
The undercover agents and detectives were
so convincing that the criminals thought
they were mobsters...and so these officers
started playing the part, even talking about
working for a New York “don.”
When PFF decided to end the charade, it
sent out party invitations to more than a
hundred “customers.” Almost 60
of them showed up that late February night
for the festivities, only to be led away
in handcuffs. Four months later—on
July 6, 1976, thirty years ago this month—the
FBI and D.C. police did it again, even though
the first sting had been well publicized.
This time, they used fake raffle tickets
to lure criminals back to the GYA garage.
By the time it was all over, the FBI and
MPD had collectively arrested nearly 300
criminals and recovered $3.4 million in property.
The cost of the operation? Nominal.
The effect? Priceless. It’s
not every day that you can get hundreds of
thieves and other assorted criminals off the
streets so quickly and easily. And it just
goes to show: sometimes the customer ISN’T
right.
Resources: FBI
History |
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