Numerous FBI executives lived it up in the executive suite and lounge of the Los Angeles Dodgers’ owners during the 2018 World Series, attending the sky-high-priced event for free — at the same time the Dodgers were a target of a federal grand jury investigation.
Federal sources said a team of high ranking FBI brass from the Los Angeles field office attended a World Series game between the Dodgers and the Boston Red Sox and racked up a massive game tab rivaling $50,000 to $65,000 in freebies, including drinks, food, executive club access and mingling with baseball all stars and Hollywood celebrities in the posh owner’s digs during the October 2018 affair.
The Dodgers rolled out the red carpet for the Feds, giving a half-dozen or more FBI brass a private VIP tour of the plush stadium and locker rooms, according to sources.
Meanwhile, across town, rank-and-file FBI agents were working part of the Bureau’s investigation into Major League Baseball, especially the LA Dodgers.
In early Oct. 2018, Sports Illustrated published a report revealing that the U.S. Department of Justice has undertaken a “sweeping probe” of MLB teams’ international signing practices and corruption throughout the sport. The Dodgers are most often cited in the article, but other teams and the league office itself are also apparently involved.
In the report SI published a selection of emails and documents taken from a collection of evidence that apparently pushed the DOJ to begin this investigation in the first place, including “videotapes, photographs, confidential legal briefs, receipts, copies of player visas and passport documents, internal club emails and private communications by franchise executives in 2015 and 2016.” None of which looks like good news for the teams involved in the probe. More on that HERE.
News of the federal probe – led by the FBI in DC and Los Angeles — went public three weeks before the FBI executives received the VIP rollout at the ballpark, sources said.
Yes. You read that correctly. Three weeks.
“Many agents are sick of this,” one federal source said. “These were not seats you can even buy; they are priceless and at a World Series game in Los Angeles. Not the mention the investigation.”
FBI sources said one FBI director who attended the event instructed his federal colleagues to make a nominal $10 purchase at the ballpark so the group technically could say they did not attend the plush event for free. One FBI source estimated the ticket price for a World Series game in Los Angeles – in the team’s owner’s suite area and seating was worth approximately $7,500 per seat.
“That’s a conservative number,” he said. “Remember, we’re not supposed to take one dime (for free).”
Unless you’re corrupt. And you’re free World Series ticket in the owner’s suite and seats is worth a month’s salary. And you can mingle with Kate Upton and friends. (see the celeb guest list below)
More intriguing, however, is the timing of the free junket. And the fact that the embattled FBI is already embroiled in numerous corruption probes. But this one belongs to FBI Director Christopher Wray, according to FBI grunts.
Wray was supposed to reform a publicly battered and bruised FBI. Instead, some of his highest ranking FBI brass in one of the FBI’s top field offices is partying with high-profile targets of an FBI probe. And drinking, eating, frolicking at an event paid for and hosted by the targets.
The LA Dodgers are owned by Guggenheim Baseball Management, which includes owners Mark Walter, Magic Johnson, Stan Kasten, Peter Guber, Bobby Patton and Todd Boehly.
Per SB Nation:
The Dodgers are the most oft-cited team in this report with multiple concerning details like employees altering books and an apparent mafia-style subsection of their organization based in Latin America.
The Dodgers straight up sorted their employees into a chart of who was doing the most crimes and how bad the crimes were. So probably that. The chart involves a list of names sorted by “level of egregious behavior.” Employees got points(?) based on whether their involvement of all of the Dodgers’ seemingly many and varied crimes was minimal, moderate, significant, serious, or criminal.
Yes, the Dodgers as an organization made a chart of how criminal each employee was and then actually included a category straight up called “criminal.” Then apparently kept it around for someone to turn over to the feds. We didn’t say anywhere in this post that these teams were smart about the extensive corruption infesting the sport.
To date, no one had been indicted as a result of the FBI probe into Major League Baseball recruiting and the Dodgers.
The Dodgers and its allies maintain the team is no longer a target of any federal probe.
Big surprise when you wine and dine top FBI executives.
And what has Wray done about this new debacle? And who from the FBI was at the game?
This story is developing. – Thomas Paine
A Video tour of the new Dodger Owner’s suite:
And this from ESPN:
The hottest ticket in Los Angeles on Sunday and this weekend, however, was to see the Dodgers take on the Boston Red Sox in the World Series. With the Dodgers looking to win their first World Series in 30 years and the Red Sox looking to win their fourth since 2004, many celebrities and athletes are showing up at Dodger Stadium to take in the World Series. Here’s a running list of celebrities attending Game 5:
Judd Apatow
Leslie Mann
Peter Budaj
Arsenio Hall
Orel Hershiser
Joe Jonas
Jimmy Kimmel
Matt Damon
Ben Affleck
Billy Crudup
Tony Robbins
Nikki Sixx
Lil Wayne
Jamie Dornan
Emily Osment
Fred Couples
Jason Bateman
Conan O’Brien
J.B. Smoove
Bryan Cranston
Steve Garvey
Mary Hart
Mickey Hatcher
Don Newcombe
Tommy Lasorda
Joe Torre
Jaime Gold
Andre Ethier
Pat Sajak
Peter Krause