MANILA, Philippines–SM Mall of Asia Arena on Wednesday fired the alleged leader of a syndicate that steals income from international shows.

The firing of “Heidi” came on the eve of Grammy-winning American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift’s arrival in Manila for a sold-out concert at MOA Arena, scheduled for Friday.

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Promoters were worried about the activities of the syndicate, which allegedly connives with ushers to sneak into MOA Arena people who have no tickets to a show but pay the group to get in.

The syndicate allegedly earns up to half a million pesos per show from the racket.

At least three incidents involving the recent concerts of another Grammy-winning artist, Bruno Mars, the K-pop group 2NE1 and top Dutch DJ Armin van Buuren at MOA Arena have been reported to the Inquirer.

An eyewitness, one of several people who paid their way into the concerts without tickets, told the Inquirer that the ushers involved in the racket had been fired by the MOA Arena management.

Arnel Gonzales, MOA Arena general manager, confirmed to the Inquirer the firing of the ushers.

Gonzales said the culprits were caught in the act during the 2NE1 concert.

“Management has overhauled the entire team of ushers,” he said. “We are maintaining a proactive approach to the situation.”

Gonzales said he would deploy “intelligence and counterintelligence” teams to thwart any more attempts by the syndicate.

Modus operandi

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The eyewitness, who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter, described to the Inquirer the syndicate’s modus operandi.

He said that days before the Bruno Mars concert, a friend called him up to say that they could pay someone to be able to watch the show without buying tickets.

On concert day, a woman who acted as the main contact approached the eyewitness’ group of five friends outside MOA Arena.

“She didn’t look like she worked in the MOA Arena, but she knew the ushers,” the eyewitness said.

He said he was also designated to collect the money from the others who also wanted to watch the concert but didn’t have tickets.

The eyewitness said he ended up holding P150,000 in cash for 30 people who paid P5,000 each.

The 30 were asked to enter MOA Arena in groups of five.

Only one ticket from a past concert, also held at MOA Arena, was used by the first group led by the eyewitness to gain entry into the venue.

Acting on instructions from the main contact, the eyewitness said he showed the ticket’s back to a female usher and passed through the turnstile.

The payment was made inside the women’s toilet, with the eyewitness handing over the money to the main contact and with another female usher watching the money change hands.

The eyewitness said that at one of the two main doors to the concert area, a third female usher put a stamp on his wrist, signifying he could now enter through the main door.

He said the process of handing over the sole ticket was repeated until all 30 people successfully got in.

“I was in charge of handing over the ticket so the usher could not be seen by the CCTV,” the eyewitness said.

“When I asked the usher, ‘Does your boss know this?’ she answered, ‘Ma’am Heidi knows.’”

According to the eyewitness, the usher confirmed that most of his colleagues at MOA Arena were involved in the racket.

Evidence

For the 2NE1 concert, the eyewitness said he negotiated with the same contact and the operation involved the same set of ushers. But after he and two of his friends entered the concert area, a commotion broke out, he said.

It turned out that MOA Arena officers discovered the racket and foiled the entry of the rest of those who had paid the syndicate.

“They became too greedy,” the eyewitness said, explaining what happened—the ushers allowed 15 people to enter all at the same time.

The morning after, the main contact informed the eyewitness that many ushers had been fired.

Gonzales told the Inquirer that the MOA Arena management saw the evidence as captured on CCTV screens.

Fake stamps

At the DJ Armin concert, the eyewitness said the ushers he dealt with were no longer around.

He said he and a friend had bought lower box tickets. But outside MOA Arena, somebody approached them and asked if they wanted an upgrade to the patrons section. The upgrade would cost them P500 per person.

The eyewitness said they agreed. He and his friend were instructed to proceed to the SMX Convention Center near MOA Arena to have their wrists stamped.

At the designated area, the eyewitness noticed that the person doing the stamping was one of the ushers who had been fired.

The eyewitness and his friend successfully entered MOA Arena’s patrons section with a fake stamp.

Concert-specific

The most remarkable thing, the eyewitness said, was how the ushers were able to get concert-specific stamps.

When it was learned that Bigfish, DJ Armin’s promoters, was using its own stamp, the ushers got a replica of the original stamp within 15 minutes, he said.

For the Taylor Swift concert on Friday, the eyewitness said, the main contact was still awaiting instructions from “Ma’am Heidi.”

“I heard Heidi had sensed that she was being watched,” the eyewitness said. “Maybe she is lying low.”

Fired

Asked by the Inquirer on Tuesday night about Heidi, Gonzales said: “There’s nobody named Heidi on my staff. Most of my staff are male.”

But on Wednesday afternoon, the eyewitness told the Inquirer that Heidi had been fired.

One of the promoters of Swift’s concert issued an appeal to those who want to watch the show but still don’t have tickets: Contact 0917-8334223.

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