In TrapM. Night Shyamalan’s latest film, the police take advantage of a concert in a stadium to try to pin down a serial killer, whom they know is in the audience. Enough to make the BBC want to tell the details of “Operation Flagship”, which took place at the end of 1985 and which inspired the Hollywood director to write his screenplay.
History does not say in whose brilliant mind this incredible plan put in place by the FBI was born, consisting of inviting as many thugs as possible to an American football match, the better to handcuff them afterwards. Does the trap seem big? However, many bandits were fooled. It must be said that the authorities had pulled out all the stops, promising their targets that their presence at the stadium would allow them to get a chance to win an all-expenses paid trip to the upcoming Super Bowl.
If the operation was a success, it is also because the FBI had thought wide, inviting no less than 3,000 wanted individuals to this Washington Redskins match (former name of the current Washington Commanders). The majority of them, on the run or too suspicious to accept such a request, did not show up; but 119 fanatics, really thinking they had hit the jackpot, actually followed through.
4% gullible
Success rate: almost 4%. Not so bad. The 119 thugs show up at the headquarters of a fictitious television channel, Flagship International, to get their prize. There, they encounter an extremely warm welcome committee, made up of mascots and cheerleaders, among others. However, all these people are police or FBI agents, ready to arrest the unwary who come to claim their supposed dues. “Today they probably couldn’t do such a thing, but back then they literally celebrated with them”comments M. Night Shyamalan.
To prevent the individuals to be arrested from mixing with honest people, the FBI has planned everything: it is taking advantage of the organization of a real match between the Redskins and the Cincinnati Bengals. When they are contacted to tell them that they have won two places for the match, the fugitives all hear the same refrain: certainly, the match starts at 1 p.m., but they are asked to show up in the morning in order to be able to collect their tickets.
“We sent invitations to just under 3,000 fugitives for brunch at the Washington Convention Center”summarizes Toby Roche, then deputy chief of the US Marshals, in a documentary devoted to the operation. On December 15, 1985, the day of the dragnet, he played the role of a bailiff responsible for verifying the identity of the winners, a roundabout way of ensuring that the bandits are who they are supposed to be and that they have not sent relatives in their place.
Toby Roche explains that all the agents had a code allowing each other to communicate the level of dangerousness and importance of the criminals: “A “confirmed winner” was someone who was wanted; a “double winner” was a dangerous person, someone who had been the victim of aggravated assault, murder or theft.”
Each role had been carefully thought out: for example, if the cheerleaders, responsible for welcoming the “winners”, were invited to be tactile, it was to better feel the arrivals and check whether they were armed or not. Which was unlikely according to Howard Safir, director of operations: “E“Generally, they don’t come with weapons, they’re distracted, they’re in a festive mood.”
To be able to arrest as many bandits as possible without scaring away the others, the supposed winners were invited to go to a reception room in groups of fifteen, away from the others, where they were finally told the true nature of their presence at Washington Stadium. In total, 101 arrests were made.
U.S. Marshal of the District of Columbia, Herbert M. Rutherford recounts with amusement: “Some fugitives had difficulty understanding what had happened, even after being arrested. As the buses carrying them moved away, one of them asked, “Can we still go to the game?” The love of sport and naivety have no limits.
