State says former Wisconsin man scammed fans on Packers tickets via his Web site

GREEN BAY, Wis. - A former Wisconsin man accused of illegally selling Green Bay Packers tickets — and failing to come up with tickets fans thought they bought — has agreed to state sanctions, including no longer using the same Internet Web site, officials said Wednesday.

Ben Huettl, 29, formerly of New London, Wis., and now of Woodbury, Minn., was accused of attempting to scam at least eight fans, including a woman from Marshfield who ordered 16 tickets for the team's final regular season game at Lambeau Field last season but didn't get them.

The state Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection said Esther Miller reported she ordered the tickets in September and paid by credit card via Huettl's Web site - http://www.lambeau-tickets.com.

Miller told investigators she paid $145 per ticket, which was billed on her credit card, but the tickets never arrived.

Huettl never replied to phone calls and e-mails in the weeks leading up to the game, she said.

"My husband and I have been ordering tickets for 15 years to come up for weekends and games and stuff," Miller said Wednesday. "It was not being able to communicate with him two weeks prior to the game. ... I should be able to talk to somebody. I should be able to leave a nasty message or something.

Huettl eventually e-mailed Miller in the days before the game, telling her that her credit card had been flagged as a fraud risk and the order canceled.

"In fact, there was no problem with the customers' transactions and this statement was untrue in all respects," according to the state order signed by Huettl. It alleged he wanted to sell the tickets at a higher price closer to the game day.

The tickets for the game with Detroit had been selling for more than $300 each the week before the game.

Huettl was not prosecuted criminally in part because he refunded Miller's money, although it was only a day before the game, Agriculture Secretary Rod Nilsestuen said.

The Millers and 14 friends managed to get tickets when a local broker gave them a break on the price, Miller said.

The state agency's order signed Tuesday required Huettl not to use the Web site and not to sell tickets or receive payments for them unless he has the tickets in his possession.

Nilsestuen said the order can carry fines of up to $10,000 if violated.

The "lambeau-tickets.com" domain name was transferred to NFL Properties.

Lambeau Field has been an official sellout for Packers games since 1960, and the team does not handle ticket sales beyond season ticket holders and specialty club seats, according to the team's ticket director Mark Wagner said.

Packers Fan Tours, based in Ashwaubenon, is the team's official tour company broker.

Wagner urged that people learn who they are buying tickets from, whether over the Internet or in the parking lot outside the game, because fraud and counterfeit tickets are a "huge problem" throughout the NFL.

Nilsestuen encouraged people to deal with brokers in the National Association of Ticket Brokers, a trade group that sets standards for its members.

No listing for Huettl could be found when The Associated Press tried to reach him for comment Wednesday night.

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Information from: Green Bay Press-Gazette, http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com