Comment on Reckless Ben and the Blatant Corruption - Protest the courts. The Police. The Corporate HQ
possiblylinux127@lemmy.zip 2 days agoI don’t think there is enough evidence here to actually make a judgment here. Posting this online leads to the people involved getting potentially harassed by fans thinking they are helping. I’m also not terribly sympathetic to anyone who hords Lego as it is clear that the family involved is not exactly poor or without status.
With that being said, I can understand how heartbreaking it must be having your lifelong Lego collection stolen by a large company. The problem is that there are a ton of people online who are drawing opinions about this without actually having all the facts. For instance, is there an actual signed contract? I haven’t actually seen it if there is one. However, I also think this is a private manner that people on the outside should not be involved in. There are a lot of red flags here including the fact that they couldn’t find an attorney willing to take the case and that there gofundme page got taken down.
In short, I’m a bit skeptical about the whole thing
Ougie@lemmy.world 2 days ago
You’re making a lot of false analogies here, but I wish people would respond instead of just downvote you. First of all, afaik there is a signed contract - if that makes a difference. Secondly, I don’t think a Lego collector can be called a hoarder, that’s… Yeah no. Third, the owner is sick and was trying to sell his collection to pay for the medical expenses, they’re not as well off as you assume. But even if they are, what difference does it make? It’s still not legal to steal from them. And finally, the whole issue here is that a big company is bullying the little guy, with the help of the establishment in the form of the police. This is now more about how the police broke the law and acted like a mafia organization and less about the theft from the company.
godsammitdam@lemmy.zip 2 days ago
It honestly feels like they’re a corporate plant with how they’re in a bunch of these comments.
possiblylinux127@lemmy.zip 2 days ago
If there was a valid contract, where are the records? Surely there are records of exactly what is owned by the family. It sounds like due to a lack of records BAM doesn’t know exactly what the family is owed (if anything) Representives from the family have visited the store multiple times but yet they can’t seem to provide clear proof of ownership. Bricks and minifigs has been reasonably cooperative as they let the family inspect the store inventory and records. However, I have yet to have seen a full list of what is owned by the family. Knowing how small companies tend to operate it is possible there was only a verbal agreement.
Assuming the family is telling the truth, it is possible that the inventory was sold without the money making it back to the family. We do know that the original store owner was in financial hot water so it is possible the money from the sales went to paying bills. It is also possible that somewhere in the chaos of it all sets were stolen. This whole thing smells of bad record keeping which unfortunately means that the family might honestly be screwed. While I do feel for the family, I don’t believe it to be the fault of BAM. From my understanding they were willing to return the sets as long as there was clear proof of ownership.
godsammitdam@lemmy.zip 2 days ago
The contract question has been answered. The Gormans publicly released their franchise agreement which explicitly states “the franchisee may also offer consignment services” directly contradicting BAM CEO Ammon McNeff’s claim that consignment was unauthorized under franchise rules. The CEO lied on camera and the document proves it.
On the security footage: on the night BAM seized the store, Ki McAllister, BAM’s Director of Operations, was on speakerphone when the Gormans informed him of the outstanding consignment. He acknowledged it and stated that since the new operator was taking over the business, he would be taking over the consignment as well. That exchange was captured on the store’s security camera and has been provided to law enforcement. BAM’s subsequent claim of ignorance about the collection is directly contradicted by their own Director of Operations on recorded footage. Several reviews by attorney’s above agree that that it is reasonable to believe there was knowledge of said consignment before the takeover.
The Gormans also have audio of McAllister saying “if we go the legal route it’s going to be a very expensive battle for you” which is the corporation explicitly threatening legal attrition against people trying to recover property that was taken from them.
BAM’s “reasonable cooperation” also included attempting to take down Ben’s Patreon to cut off his legal funding, getting his GoFundMe removed, and filing a RICO lawsuit against him, the Mansell family, and associates. Patreon’s own CEO called their takedown attempt a “despicable maneuver” and refused to comply, outright telling BAM to sue Patreon.
This isn’t bad record keeping. This is a documented corporate coverup with security footage, released contracts, recorded phone calls, and a paper trail of legal intimidation tactics. The only reason any of this is moving toward resolution is because of public pressure. Which is exactly why spreading it matters.
Here’s a link to all the documents made public so far, including the Gorman’s signed franchise agreement, BAMs old and new franchise agreements, Mansell’s signed consignment agreement, and more.
bamsucks.com
You really sound like a corporate plant dude. “And anyone with a bunch of legos is obviously well off.” 1 - no? How is that even a statement? 2 - and how does that make it ok to steal from them?
Ougie@lemmy.world 2 days ago
Don’t know if you guys saw but Cofeezilla came out with his video yesterday. There’s a little bit more nuance regarding the actual numbers than what one would think just watching the reckless Ben series.
Not that it changes anything, still a thieving business run by rats and a completely corrupt police department - which coffee does not go into for some reason - very disappointed with that tbh since to me that’s the biggest thing in this story…