Man faked own abduction to avoid paying out Super Bowl bets, cops say

A Western New York man faked being abducted and robbed to avoid paying money he owed from his Super Bowl LIII pool, according to police.

On Wednesday, troopers found Robert Brandel, 60, of North Tonawanda in the back seat of his Ford F-150 with a rope tied around his neck and attached to the headrest, and his hands and ankles bound with duct tape, New York State Police said in a press release.

Brandel told police he had picked up two men who were involved in his Super Bowl squares pool, and one of the men brandished a pistol and took $16,000 in cash from him. He said the men forced him to drive around for two days before eventually tying him up in his vehicle and leaving him in a parking lot.

Upon further investigation, police determined that Brandel had fabricated the story. Brandel was allegedly running a $50,000-payout Super Bowl pool in which he made up some of the names on the squares in the hopes of winning most of the money. However, he was unable to make the payouts and was on the hook for most of the $50,000, police said.

Brandel was arrested for scheme to defraud, a felony, and falsely reporting an incident, a misdemeanor.

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