Classic ‘Seinfeld’ episode comes to life – three busted for inter-state bottle redemption scam

Apart from ketchup and mustard in the same bottle, the best idea to ever come out of ‘Seinfeld’ was Kramer and Newman’s idea to run bottles and cans to Michigan to capitalize on their generous 10-cent refund policy. Except maybe the idea isn’t so great after all, since it didn’t end up working for them (mainly due to stumbling upon Jerry’s stolen car, but still) or for three real-life individuals now facing criminal charges for a similar scam in the state of Maine. They must have blown all their margins on gasoline.

A couple that runs a Maine redemption center and a Massachusetts man were indicted this week for allegedly redeeming beverage containers in Maine that were bought in other states.

Thomas and Megan Woodard, who run Green Bee Redemption in Kittery, face the more serious charge of allegedly passing off more than 100,000 out-of-state containers – with a value of more than $10,000 – as if they had been purchased in Maine.

100,000 containers? That’s a lot of Four Loko.

Apparently can refund scams are a serious issue in some places, as approximately 90 million out-of-state bottles are said to be redeemed illegally in Maine every year. I didn’t know there was 90 million of anything in Maine. Why all the black market shenanigans, though?

Officials estimate that up to 1 billion beverage containers are sold in Maine each year. Containers sold in other states, however, carry the Maine deposit stamp because it’s not cost-effective to change labeling for each state.

The redemption rate – and the instances of fraud – have gone up with the poor economy.

Ah, of course. The economy. Because it’s not like people have been looking for ways to scam the system for a few extra bucks since the dawn of civilization or anything. Nope, just this damn economy. Is there anything it can’t do?

In the meantime, keep your eyes peeled for any more ‘Seinfeld’ inspired stories to hit the news. I for one think a coffee-table book that actually turns into a coffee-table is pretty brilliant. Just no puffy shirts, please.

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Shades of ‘Seinfeld’ : Maine bottle scam alleged [Associated Press]