UK police warn over online ticket scams

Ticketing has been the most contentious issue for London organisers in the run-up to the July 27-Aug. 12 Games.

Demand for many events has outstripped supply, prompting complaints about the way tickets were allocated, the cost and technical glitches in handling applications.

Anger was fuelled at the weekend when Britain's Sunday Times newspaper reported that National Olympic Committees and Authorised Ticket Resellers representing 54 nations had broken rules over the sale of London 2012 tickets.

With Olympic tickets now being delivered to British homes, police are stepping up efforts to halt black market trade, or  ticket touting as Britons call it.

"At this time when the majority of tickets have been sold, the public need to be more wary than ever about buying from an unauthorised source," said Detective Superintendent Nick Downing.

"If they are tempted to do so, they run the risk of being ripped off for non-existent tickets or having their personal details stolen and used in other crimes," added Downing, head of the "Operation Podium" drive to stamp out illegal sales.

British police said they had disabled two websites in a joint investigation with Portuguese colleagues and had charged a 44-year-old man with fraud and money laundering.

Sales for the latest batch of Olympic tickets had been unusually sluggish, prompting talk of "ticket fatigue" among cash-strapped Britons.

Prestige Ticketing, an authorised Olympic partner, has taken out newspaper advertisements for its remaining VIP ticket, food and drink hospitality packages, usually the preserve of corporate customers.

However, the prices start from 695 pounds ($1,100) per person for athletics in the Olympic Stadium, putting them out of the reach of many Britons.  ($1 = 0.6364 British pounds)