Operation Flagship

On December 15, 1985, a joint sting operation by the U.S. Marshals Service and the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Police Department netted 101 wanted fugitives. The operation, called Flagship, is considered one of the largest and most successful mass arrests of fugitives in U.S. law enforcement history.

The fugitives were lured to the Washington Convention Center by an invitation from a fake television company, Flagship International Sports Television. The company’s acronym, F.I.S.T., matched that of the Fugitive Investigative Strike Team, the task force running the operation. The invitation promised two free tickets to a Washington Redskins home game against the Cincinnati Bengals, plus a chance to win tickets to Super Bowl XX. A total of 166 marshals and officers took part, with undercover personnel disguised as tuxedoed ushers, cheerleaders, emcees, caterers, mascots, and maintenance staff.

The operation grew out of a series of nine FIST operations conducted from 1981 to 1986, which aimed to capture thousands of fugitives. The marshals often used "get-something-for-nothing" schemes. In 1984, during FIST VII—a two-month, eight-state effort that arrested 3,309 fugitives—they used various ruses: in New York City, fugitives were told to pick up "valuable" packages from a fake delivery service; in Buffalo, they were notified of lottery winnings between $250 and $10,000; in Hartford, Connecticut, younger fugitives were offered two free tickets to a Boy George concert, dinner, and a limousine. In every case, the fugitives were arrested when they showed up to claim their prizes. Arresting fugitives away from home was safer, as they were often unarmed and off guard. At least half of those arrested in FIST VII were later released on bail.

The idea for Operation Flagship came during dinner between Chief Deputy U.S. Marshal Tobias P. Roche and U.S. Marshal Herbert M. Rutherford III, both of the District of Columbia. They noted the intense local support for the Redskins, the difficulty of getting tickets to sold-out home games, and the multi-year waiting list for season tickets. They focused on the December 15 game against the Bengals, which would decide a playoff spot. In November 1985, Roche, with Rutherford’s approval, had deputy marshals and police task force members mail invitations to the last known addresses of about 3,000 wanted persons.