Using A Brick As A Keymaster Master Key

I work in a college bar right off campus. Our day shifts are a mix of college kids and professors grabbing food on their lunch breaks and one specific vagabond “townie” most everyone in our little city recognizes. He usually comes in, takes his time with a $2 beer, and plays pool, darts, or some of the other games we have. One game he always dumps a few dollars into is a “Keymaster” game, which works a lot like a claw game in an arcade but has more “grown-up” prizes like Amazon gift cards, iPads, or cash. 

One, he comes up to me at the bar.

Townie: “I think that Keymaster game is rigged. I never win on that thing.”

Me: “Well, my guess is that it kind of is. It’s not going to give out the prizes until it’s made a certain amount of money. We don’t own the machine; I’m just guessing that’s how those things turn a profit.”

Townie: *A little annoyed* “If you’re telling me that game is rigged, I’m telling you I’m gonna come in here one day with a brick, bust it open, and take my prizes!”

I laugh it off. Again, he is a little rough around the edges, but he’s always around and never problematic. I joke about it with our owner and a few coworkers that day. 

Cut to a week later. It’s my day off, and I’m just hanging at home when I get a call from the owner. That’s never a good sign. Is he calling me in on my day off? Did I mess something up while closing last night? I pick up the phone, fully prepared to be told bad news, and the owner is cracking up laughing.

Owner: “He did it!” *Laughs* “He actually f****** did it!” *Laughs some more*

Me: “Who did what?!”

Owner: *In between more laughs* “[Townie] actually threw a brick through the Keymaster machine! Cops are coming up here. Would you mind swinging in and telling them what he told you last week?”

Me: “Holy s***! Yeah, no problem! I’ll be right in!”

Needless to say, [Townie] was caught. Maybe the biggest crime was the fact that he broke the glass, grabbed the small amount that he could, and left behind several hundred dollars’ worth of other prizes including cash, an iPad, and a $250 Delta gift card. I watched the surveillance video with the police and the owner, and it was well worth being called in for that on a day off!

Moral of the story: don’t confess to a crime in advance!