Suspected Pearl Jam Scammer Arrested In Denver

DENVER -- A man who claimed to be a guitarist for Pearl Jam was arrested in Denver Wednesday after a suspicious fan found a story about the scam on TheDenverChannel.com.

Video

Couple Describes How They Nabbed Pearl Jam Suspect

The man's undoing started Wednesday when he walked into the Wells Fargo in Cherry Creek North, saying he was Mike McCready, with the band Pearl Jam, and was setting up an account for his mother, who was moving to Denver.

Witnesses said the man then claimed the band was doing a benefit concert this weekend at Red Rocks and he was selling tickets worth $1,000 for only $20. A bank employee called her husband, who is a Pearl Jam fan, and the husband called a friend.

The friend, who also lived in Denver, mentioned that he remembered reading a story about a Peal Jam ticket scam on the Internet and a Google news search pulled up the original story on TheDenverChannel.com. The husband then called his wife to give her the news and she called police.

The man who identified himself as McCready turned out to be John Harlan, the man profiled in an earlier story on 7NEWS. Harlan was arrested Wednesday for investigation of criminal impersonation and theft.

Last month, police said that Harlan had been spotted in Denver, allegedly selling phony Pearl Jam concert tickets.

Police said Harlan is a one-man crime wave working his way around the country. He is wanted for allegedly pulling this same scam in Las Vegas, New York, Miami and New Mexico.