People in Pittsburgh hoping to attend a hot air balloon glow festival were scammed into buying tickets to the fake event, and authorities say Chicago residents are the organizers' next target.
Allegheny County police confirmed they were investigating a phony "Pittsburgh Balloon Glow" event advertised to lift off at an area park over the weekend.
"It appears this event is part of an ongoing nationwide scam and has no connection with Allegheny County Parks," police said in a Facebook post warning residents Monday.
Spectator tickets were priced at $25 to $50, while food vendor fees were listed at $500, according to the online festival description.
Event organizers, Hot Air America, Inc., are promoting an identical event in the Chicago area, followed by one in Porter County, Indiana, on the Eventbrite ticketing platform, dated for later this month.
In May, park officials in Madison, Wisconsin, confirmed a Hot Air America, Inc., hot air balloon glow festival advertised on a local radio station, Facebook, and Eventbrite was illegitimate.
Eventbrite and Hot Air America, Inc., did not immediately respond to HNGN's requests for comment.
Similarly, in 2019, balloon event organizer Richard Garvie canceled an Atlanta balloon glow festival and was accused of staging 10 other balloon events around the country, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.