Omega busts another thief at BCA

It is sad that people have to worry about this type of thing happening when they are just trying to make a living and support their family. I wonder if the people that steal from vendors like Omega(Mike) really understand that the loss of one cue like that could cause a vendor to never return to that event.

Glad they caught the person and Mike was able to get his product back. Very happy to hear that there was also a good person in the booth that was able to have Gilbert's back when it happened.

Maybe next year Mike will have to hire extra staff to cover the booth even during the slow times of the day.
 
banditgrrr said:
...One of the guys from the team even stood in the isle telling people "don't buy anything in this booth."...
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This wonderful person should also be banned by BCA. Not just out of principal, though principal should be enough, but also for what can only be considered as harassment of a vendor who I assume paid to be present at the event. People like these guys (that would be thieves and their supporters) make the world worse place.
 
Kickin' Chicken said:
I just tried to post the following messaqge on Santa Barbara Pool Leagues Facebook, however, looks like I'm no longer allowed to post on there.

It appears as though you have removed a few comments posted here about Moose Lodge 2 member Rigo Morales who was caught stealing a cue from the Omega booth at BCA Vegas. He was taken into custody and banned from the tourney and he admitted his bad deed. In fact, some of his team mates tried to pay for the cue then became obnoxious with Omega, the victim, and one team member was reported to be telling customers not to buy from them. Please don't remove or block this info here. Sweeping it under the rug is not how to deal with such behavior. Accountability, transparency, and honesty are the way to go. Best of luck to your other teams who are there competing. #winningisnteverything

oh well, heads in sand there, I suppose.

best,
brian kc
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Hi Brian, it looks like your posts did make it -- two copies, in fact. (The more, the better. ;) )

I re-posted a copy of what I'd posted yesterday there as well.

I agree with your synopsis that it's not good to just sweep this under the rug by deleting posts. Stealing a cue (which is not petty theft -- that McDermott was most likely not a cheap cue) is well over that line of "wellll... it's not like he stole something from a vendor or anything" look-the-other-way notion. Leagues have to be held responsible for their players, and keep the news transparent.

-Sean
 
StonedCEO said:
Santa Barbara Pool League deleted any mention of the incident from their facebook page. Apparently they choose to shield the thief. Pathetic.

https://www.facebook.com/sb8ball
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I talked with Mike in the Omega booth last night for about an hour. He said he considered taking payment for the cue, until their league operator came up and offered him money to "make this go away." It doesn't surprise me that they deleted the post from Facebook and blocked people. The operator is just as corrupt as his players! If anyone here is playing anyone from that league, watch your stuff!!!!
 
banditgrrr said:
I talked with Mike in the Omega booth last night for about an hour. He said he considered taking payment for the cue, until their league operator came up and offered him money to "make this go away." It doesn't surprise me that they deleted the post from Facebook and blocked us. The operator is just as corrupt as his players! If anyone here is playing anyone from that league, watch your stuff!!!!
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That's right -- I'd have done the same as soon as the words "make this go away" left the guy's lips. That just smacks of the concealment and wall-of-silence thing, so you have no idea *what else* goes on (or had gone on).

AZB is a double-edged sword, with the sensationalistic nature of some of the members here, but at the same time, some really good stuff gets exposed and written about here that you'll find nowhere else.

Your exposure of this incident, banditgrrr, is a good example of the latter. Want to take a good chomp into cleaning up the image of pool and make it more public-friendly? Shine a light on these incidents, and the subsequent actions taken to clean it up. That'll go a long way.

-Sean
 
Kickin' Chicken said:
I just tried to post the following messaqge on Santa Barbara Pool Leagues Facebook, however, looks like I'm no longer allowed to post on there.

It appears as though you have removed a few comments posted here about Moose Lodge 2 member Rigo Morales who was caught stealing a cue from the Omega booth at BCA Vegas. He was taken into custody and banned from the tourney and he admitted his bad deed. In fact, some of his team mates tried to pay for the cue then became obnoxious with Omega, the victim, and one team member was reported to be telling customers not to buy from them. Please don't remove or block this info here. Sweeping it under the rug is not how to deal with such behavior. Accountability, transparency, and honesty are the way to go. Best of luck to your other teams who are there competing. #winningisnteverything

oh well, heads in sand there, I suppose.

best,
brian kc
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I copied and pasted your above post on their timeline
 
The whole thing is odd because when I was in Santa Barbara, the only thing I saw was restaurants and financial institutions.
Something isn't right with this Santa Barbara Moose Lodge.
I was looking at the moose lodge pool league photo's, and you wonder what really goes on in that place.
A full investigation by the FBI, BCA, and AZB, could probably dig up quite a bit of dirt on this so-called Moose Lodge.
The Rigo Morales incident could rock the entire Santa Barbara Pool League, as well as the Santa Barbara Moose community.
 
cuesblues said:
The whole thing is odd because when I was in Santa Barbara, the only thing I saw was restaurants and financial institutions.
Something isn't right with this Santa Barbara Moose Lodge.
I was looking at the moose lodge pool league photo's, and you wonder what really goes on in that place.
A full investigation by the FBI, BCA, and AZB, could probably dig up quite a bit of dirt on this so-called Moose Lodge.
The Rigo Morales incident could rock the entire Santa Barbara Pool League, as well as the Santa Barbara Moose community.
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Not to mention Smokey The Bear & the Park Rangers.....moose everywhere: beware. :smile:

J
 
jimmyg said:
Not to mention Smokey The Bear & the Park Rangers.....moose everywhere: beware. :smile:

J
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They don't want me out there, that's for sure
If I can sneak up on these guys in my front yard, I can catch a moose walking around Santa Barbara with a stolen pool cue



 
Shocked, Dismayed, and Outraged

Please be assured that the officers and members of the Santa Barbara Pool League are as shocked, dismayed, and outraged at this incident as the rest of you, and as soon as the Board is able to reconvene, the #1 agenda item will be deciding the pool league future of any and all of the players that were complicit in this incident.

Mark Griffin, Ozzy Reynolds, and Bill Stock are still very busy running the tournaments at the Rio, but when they are finished, I'm sure they will make a decision about the future BCAPL status of those involved. The Santa Barbara Pool League will abide by whatever decision they make.

It was a mistake to delete the initial two Facebook posts, as this made it appear that our league does not take this seriously. We take this matter VERY seriously. We would like to thank the individual who initially shared this thread on our Facebook page to let us know about this online AZB discussion.

We would also like to commend the person who witnessed the theft and was courageous enough to help catch the thief and have the stolen merchandise returned.

Chris Ackler
President
Santa Barbara Pool League
 
sbpoolleague said:
Please be assured that the officers and members of the Santa Barbara Pool League are as shocked, dismayed, and outraged at this incident as the rest of you, and as soon as the Board is able to reconvene, the #1 agenda item will be deciding the pool league future of any and all of the players that were complicit in this incident.

Mark Griffin, Ozzy Reynolds, and Bill Stock are still very busy running the tournaments at the Rio, but when they are finished, I'm sure they will make a decision about the future BCAPL status of those involved. The Santa Barbara Pool League will abide by whatever decision they make.

It was a mistake to delete the initial two Facebook posts, as this made it appear that our league does not take this seriously. We take this matter VERY seriously. We would like to thank the individual who initially shared this thread on our Facebook page to let us know about this online AZB discussion.

We would also like to commend the person who witnessed the theft and was courageous enough to help catch the thief and have the stolen merchandise returned.

Chris Ackler
President
Santa Barbara Pool League
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You are very welcome, Mr. Ackler. And we thank you profusely for coming here to address the audience with an official reply, for it's a BIG audience.

I did think it was strange to delete the posts, but I thank you for addressing that -- which kills two birds with one stone by also addressing the "sweeping it under the rug" thing.

Thank you!
-Sean
 
banditgrrr said:
After much thought and consideration, I have decided to put this guy on blast. Before anyone thinks he might be unfairly judged....I watched him steal the cue, followed him away from the booth, watched Gilbert go verify it was stolen, watched him admit that he stole it and watched the Rio security escort him off the floor to their holding area. With that being said, it's time for the public service announcement and a few links for your enjoyment......


Santa Barbara Pool League Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/sb8ball


Santa Barbara Pool League Website - Moose Lodge 2
http://www.sb8ball.com/php/index.php?cat=teampage&season=Win14&teamlink=mooselodge2






Meet Rigo Morales who likes to steal things.


face.jpg



Now meet his team that has no sense of morals by trying to justify his behavior, and I quote "as an honest mistake."



team.jpg
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He's a very nice looking THIEF! I will guarantee you that's the not the first time he's stolen something. I suspect he already has a criminal record. It wouldn't be too hard to find out. His "teammates" look like a motley crew as well. That might even be his father or uncle next to him.

I agree that they may not have known the cue was stolen until after he was apprehended. But once they knew the facts, they should not have sided with him in any way, team or not. I would be ashamed to be associated with someone who would steal from a vendor like Omega. Mike Huang, the owner of Omega, is a helluva guy who has helped many a pool player to get back on their feet.

If I had been in that booth and saw what banditt saw, I would have tackled the guy before he was ten feet away. And I'm serious!
 
Masirib5 said:
Come on guys why all the hate? It was just a Moose Lodge initiation.

"I stole de Q, now do I get in your club?" signed Rigo the ***** word for female dog!

--Jeff
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Jeff, you and I know what would happen to a cue thief in the Philippines. And the "pulis" wouldn't be involved! :rolleyes:
 
JB Cases said:
I feel insulted that no one has tried to steal any of our cases. :-)

Glad they caught the guy.
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The way your booth is set up, with high visibility all around, it would be pretty hard to walk off with one. And there were always people sitting in those nice comfy chairs watching for you! :grin:
 
jay helfert said:
The way your booth is set up, with high visibility all around, it would be pretty hard to walk off with one. And there were always people sitting in those nice comfy chairs watching for you! :grin:
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If John still does things the way I remember he does things, he TIE-WRAPS the cases to the iron mesh screen that the cases are displayed on with heavy-duty 1/4-inch wide tie-wraps. I would think it's very easy to see someone trying to snip those heavy-duty tie-wraps with a pair of diagonal pliers (especially the loud "click" they emit), or else trying to saw through then with a knife. ;)

-Sean
 
The reaction of the teammates is ridiculous but I can't say I'm surprised.

Where are these guys from?
 
I live 30 miles from Santa Barbara and know many quality pool players in that league. They are top quality people and some very good pool players. I do not know the crook involved and damn glad I dont, but he does need to removed as much as posible from the pool community (BAC, APA and any other league organizations). Plus he gets to deal with criminal charges in L.V. Maybe his team will post bail.
It is important that people understand, neither his nor his team mates actions are typical of normal pool players in the league or Santa Barbara. I am very happy to see the picture posted, just incase he starts moving around to area halls.
 
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sfleinen said:
If John still does things the way I remember he does things, he TIE-WRAPS the cases to the iron mesh screen that the cases are displayed on with heavy-duty 1/4-inch wide tie-wraps. I would think it's very easy to see someone trying to snip those heavy-duty tie-wraps with a pair of diagonal pliers (especially the loud "click" they emit), or else trying to saw through then with a knife. ;)

-Sean
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Actually there were several of John's cases lifted out of there this year, I grabbed a few myself.
John doesn't know, he still thinks that nobody cares about his cases><:smile:
 
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