Weymouth resident Jamie Pritchard-Holland allegedly called a NewYork auction service last September and said he had a son dying ofcancer and mounting medical bills. He needed money fast, he said,and was willing to auction off his vast collection of Boston RedSox memorabilia given to him by none other than Theo Epstein, theteam's general manager.
But yesterday the tale was unraveled at a press conference inHauppauge, N.Y.
'There was no sick child, there were no hospital bills, therewere no doctors bills,' said Thomas Spota, district attorney forSuffolk County, N.Y. 'There was nothing but pure greed on Holland'spart.'
Pritchard-Holland, 32, was arrested in New York May 4 andcharged with third-degree criminal possession of stolen property -a treasure trove of Red Sox items worth an estimated $25,000. Itincluded a home plate, a pair of Dustin Pedroia's cleats, KevinYoukilis's first-base glove, and four black duffel bags containinguniforms, caps, warm-up jackets, and other items.
Pritchard-Holland also had a center field marker signed by RedSox great Johnny Pesky, whose family had also apparently been dupedby the tale, authorities said. Authorities say the goods were stolenin a burglary of Fenway Park about a year ago, although Pritchard-Holland has not been charged with that crime. If convicted on thecharges, he faces a maximum of seven years in prison. He was alsocharged in Boston Municipal Court March 31 with two counts ofreceiving stolen property and faces a maximum of five years inprison on each count.
He pleaded not guilty to all charges and remains free on personalrecognizance, due in court in New York June 7 and in Boston June30.
Pritchard-Holland 'got as far as he did with his lies because hewas very convincing, believable, and smart,' said Joshua LelandEvans, founder of Lelands, the Bohemia, N.Y auction service thattook the collection on consignment and had planned to include it ina $2 million sports memorabilia auction in December.
But Major League Baseball officials spotted the stolen goods forsale on Leland's website and contacted Spota's office, whichlaunched a criminal investigation. Detectives in Spota's officeconducted an undercover operation and registered with the site asinterested bidders.
Authorities were allowed to view and inspect the stolenmerchandise at the auction service's warehouse in Bohemia. Theinvestigators then obtained a search warrant, seized the items, andarrested Pritchard-Holland in New York.
'I've been doing this for a long time, and it's hard to fool me,'Evans said. 'But as smart as he [Pritchard-Holland] was, he wasstupid for coming to us, because we give copies of our books to theMLB, the Red Sox, law enforcement, to everybody. It's the worst-kept secret in the world.'
The sports memorabilia industry is a billion-dollar business, specialists say.
'It just shows how utterly ridiculous the whole memorabilia issuehas become,' said Joe Bick, president of Pro Star Management inCincinnati. The agency represents Youkilis and other professionalbaseball players. 'It's obviously gone from being a nice hobbyenjoyed mostly by kids to something that has become twisted into amoney-making endeavor.'
Phil Castinetti,, owner of Sportsworld Inc. in Saugus, whichsays it is the largest sports memorabilia store in New England,estimated the home plate alone could fetch as much as $10,000.
'It depends on who's looking at it, but with those things inyour possession, you could probably name your price,' he said. 'Thehome plate after the '04 World Series sold for $40,000.
According to Boston police reports, Fenway Park was burglarizedApril 15, 2010.
The center field marker was cut off the bullpen wall, and thehome plate was stolen from the visitor's bullpen. A stocky male wasobserved entering the clubhouse garage on Van Ness Street andwalking off with four black duffel bags containing Red Sox equipmentvalued between $8,000 and $10,000, according to the reports.
Jake Wark, spokesman for the Suffolk County, district attorney'soffice, said investigators are working to determine how Pritchard-Holland obtained the items.
'It's the subject of an ongoing investigation, and we can'tcomment at this point on that matter,' Wark said.
The Red Sox declined to comment on the case, citing the ongoinginvestigation.
Pritchard-Holland's latest address was in Weymouth, but he alsorecently lived on Fox Hill Road in Nahant, authorities said. Hecould not be reached at either address yesterday.
Last month, Pritchard-Holland was found guilty in PlymouthDistrict Court of stealing a 15-inch television from a CVS Pharmacyin Marshfield and ordered to pay a $200 fine, officials said.
Evans, the Long Island auctioneer, said he even gave Pritchard-Holland a $2,000 loan as a gesture of compassion, after taking theitems for auction.
'I totally blame myself for this,' Evans said. 'You want to dodue diligence and make that phone call. You want to contact TheoEpstein but don't have the time. Once in a great while, things likethis happen, and it's a pity. But thankfully, there is a system ofchecks and balances.'
Brian R. Ballou can be reached at bballou@globe.com
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