(REHOBOTH BEACH, Del.) - A traditional yet affordable summer pastime for families vacationing in Rehoboth Beach is the Funland amusement park located on the boardwalk.
Though despite the park's 56-year history of offering bargain prices for its thrill rides, some people resort to cutting corners.
On Wednesday, Aug. 9, Rehoboth Beach police arrested 81-year Marilyn Hammerman from Rockville, Md. who allegedly tried to use counterfeit tickets on one of the rides.
Funland officials said in a statement the employee who received the tickets immediately noticed they were counterfeits due to the volume of tickets handled daily.
Police said Hmmerman had at least 20 fake ride tickets and was charged with one misdemeanor theft count.
The news comes as a shock to Funland visitors who said the tickets are already sold at affordable prices.
"I guess if you were going to scalp something, you'd want to scalp something a little more expensive than these tickets," said Eric Schneider who was visiting Funland with his two daughters from Baltimore. "I mean they're economical, they're very affordable."
Schneider's daughter said it would be devastating to be sold counterfeit ride tickets to Funland.
"I would be very disappointed that people would do that. They're not very expensive so i just think people would just pay for it," said Jessica Schneider.
Kaitlyn Miller of Swoyersville, Pa. said the ticket booths are easy to find as well as how much each ticket costs.
"Being able to get a book of 100 tickets for only $25, you get on so many rides. The ticket booths are very clearly marked inside so that's really the only place where we ever get the tickets from," said Miller.
It's unclear at this point how Hammerman came across the tickets but police and Funland officials say the woman presented the tickets while she was with a group of family members. However, those family members, police and park officials say, allegedly claimed they knew nothing about Hammerman's tickets being fake.
All ride tickets at Funland are sold inside the facility at designated booths. Tickets start at 35 cents each and can be bought in bulk for as little as $7.
Funland's park managers said they believe this was an isolated incident and will continue to offer "today's fun at yesterday's prices."