In April 2000 a joint report from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internal Revenue Service, and U.S. Attorney’s Office regarding the now well-known “Operation Bullpen” began with the following paragraph: “According to long-time memorabilia collectors, the market for genuine vintage memorabilia has changed dramatically over the last decade. In the late 1980s, the market … [Read more...] about Autograph Authentication on Amazon and eBay: Where Does It Stand?
operation bullpen
Absolutely Guaranteed to be 100 Percent Fake
By Kevin Nelson (Editor’s note: This is the fifth and final installment in our series of special reports on Operation Bullpen and its effect on the collecting hobby today.) In the spring of 1999, months before the FBI would drop the hammer on him and his colleagues, forger Greg Marino was talking to his brother on the phone in southern California, expressing disgust for … [Read more...] about Absolutely Guaranteed to be 100 Percent Fake
The Forgers’ Credo: Give ‘Em What They Want
Editor’s note: This is the fourth in our series of special reports on Operation Bullpen, the infamous national forgery ring that was brought down by the FBI in 1999 but whose influence continues to be felt today.) In the third installment in this series I talked about Greg Marino and his father Angelo, both of whom have paid their debt to society and moved on with their … [Read more...] about The Forgers’ Credo: Give ‘Em What They Want
The Beautiful Forgeries That Most Collectors Will Never Buy
By Kevin Nelson (Editor’s note: This is the third in our series of special reports on the infamous Operation Bullpen conspiracy and its effects on the hobby today.) In our conversations for my book on Operation Bullpen, Greg Marino told me that he thought that during his five years as the chief forger of the ring he had signed a million autographs. “I mean, I did a … [Read more...] about The Beautiful Forgeries That Most Collectors Will Never Buy
The Babe Ruth Underpants Box and other Ruthian Forgeries
By Kevin Nelson [Editor’s note: This is the second in our series on the notorious Operation Bullpen case.) The most notorious forgery produced by the Operation Bullpen conspiracy was, undoubtedly, the Mother Teresa baseball, supposedly signed by the late Christian missionary who devoted her life to serving the poor. But if the Mother Teresa forgery was No. 1, what was … [Read more...] about The Babe Ruth Underpants Box and other Ruthian Forgeries
Operation Bullpen: The Case That Has Never Gone Away
By Kevin Nelson On October 13, 1999, the FBI crashed the party of a bunch of guys who found a way to make money fall from the sky. On that day hundreds of federal agents raided dozens of homes and businesses in six states and seized a mountain of forged memorabilia and a half-million dollars in cold hard cash, busting up what was the biggest autograph forgery ring in … [Read more...] about Operation Bullpen: The Case That Has Never Gone Away
Editor’s Blog: Let’s Play Find the Forgers
In homes and offices across North America sit big, beautiful photographs. Expensive jerseys. Vintage display items. Signed baseballs. All purchased by those who wanted something to remind themselves of their favorite sport, favorite player or favorite moment in sports history. All cost hundreds, maybe a few thousand dollars. All bearing someone's John Hancock. Not … [Read more...] about Editor’s Blog: Let’s Play Find the Forgers
Fake Autographs Turn into Real Help for Baseball Charity
Through its sheer numbers, the phony autographs seized by the FBI during the famous Operation Bullpen raid in October of 1999 made headlines. The most prolific member of the forgery ring, Greg Marino, told FBI investigators that he had worked day and night for years, signing as many as one million autographs. A lot of them wound up in FBI files and storage … [Read more...] about Fake Autographs Turn into Real Help for Baseball Charity