A police sting operation led to the arrest of three men accused of illegally selling and reusing wristbands for the Austin City Limits Music Festival, according to court documents.

The men — 24-year-old Cameron Beck, 30-year-old Nathan Beck and 33-year-old Michael Martin — face charges of theft of service, a state jail felony, and engaging in organized criminal activity, records show.

Police said the men sold wristbands on Craigslist and escorted buyers into the festival grounds while holding their property as collateral. Once inside, they took the wristbands back to use on other buyers, according to arrest affidavits filed against the men.

An undercover officer answered the ad and met with the three men, police said. Martin told the officer the wristband would be $150 and that he would need to hand over a cellphone or an ID card as collateral until they entered the festival grounds, according to the affidavit. As Martin escorted a group into the festival gates, Nathan Beck collected the officer's money and cellphone before handing them to Cameron Beck, who escorted the officer and other customers into the festival, the affidavit said. Martin then returned with several wristbands, police said.

The officer "observed Nathan and Cameron using small, green plastic straws to defeat the clip on the wristband, so they could be loosened and reapplied to other persons," according to the affidavit.

Once the officer was escorted into the festival and exchanged his wristband for the cellphone, police arrested the three men, the affidavit said.

Using the serial numbers on the wristbands, ACL Fest organizers helped police investigators determine how many times the wristbands were used to gain access into the festival. Five wristbands were used between 19 and 22 times — for a total of 104 scans worth more than $10,000 in admission fees, police said.

The men were not listed in the Travis County Jail on Monday, online records show.