A bright spot is Bebe Rexha as a dark web expert who helps Connie and Jojo launder their money. And I think it comes from loneliness and feeling isolated and kind of under-utilized or under-appreciated. The CIC and some of its members were on location in a mobile command unit watching the bust." 17:42 EST 23 Jul 2021. In July 2012, police in Phoenix, Arizona arrested three women in a coupon scam that cost manufacturers roughly $40 million. Users had to be 'invited' to join the site, and fans raved about the impossibly good deals, like a coupon for a free pizza worth $7 that would cost shoppers just $1. One local law enforcement official at the time told the news: The opulence and the money was the equivalent of drug cartel-type of stuff. Details of the true story at the heart of Queenpinswere first revealed in July 2012. Aron Gaudet and Gita Pullapilly's Queenpins concerns two Arizona suburbanites, Connie (Kristen Bell) and JoJo (Kirby . The counterfeiting scheme was previously featured in theCBS TV docu-series Pink Collar Crimes in 2018. And I think it comes from loneliness and feeling isolated and kind of under-utilized or under-appreciated. Yes, like the grocery store coupons that come with the Sunday paper. Now that theyve done their time and are working to pay off their debt, the women appear to be trying to put the incident behind them. And thats why they make excuses, he said. A judge sentenced Ramirez to twenty-four months in prison and seven years probation. -Daily Mail. A reality television series about this trend had an episode on the Arizona coupon case. Here's the cast and character guide and the real-life counterparts. Bell plays former Olympian and bored. This is based on the true story of three women: Robin Ramirez, Marilyn Johnson, and Amiko "Amy" Fountain. No. Judge Rosa Mroz of Maricopa County Superior Court ordered all three to payProcter & Gamble $1,288,682 in reimbursement. The trail led to the Arizona coupon ring located in Phoenix. If you can get an unlimited number of those, think how this grows. Upon realizing that they could get a coupon for a free item sent to them just by complaining to the manufacturer, they come up with a plan to smuggle and steal cases of those coupons, to then sell to people. Ill go out on a limb here and predict that their once noble intentions go off the rails. His filmography contains works such as Face/Off, The Astronaut's Wife, and The Hangover Part II, and he will next be appearing inThe Ogilvy Fortune. Kristen Bell stars as Connie Kaminski, a suburban housewife who just wants to find a solution for the debtburying her and her husband. They encounter married employees Alejandro and Rosa Diaz, who agree to send them the unused coupons. Marilyn Johnson, 54, Robin Ramirez, 40, and Amiko Fountain, 42, were taken into custody, and in a press conference, police said a search warrant served resulted in the seizing of $40 million worth of coupons and $2 million worth of assets from the womens homes, including $240,000 in vehicles, 22 guns, and a 40-foot speedboat. Kristen Anne Bell (born 1980) is an American actress and singer. However, everything that's built onto this premise in the movie is almost entirely fictional. The opening scenes show Bell's character getting arrested before a flashback to explain what happened. Indeed, the movie is inspired by a true story, but just how closely does the film follow the events and people its based on? The women sold their counterfeit coupons on various online sites, including eBay and their own website, SavvyShopperSite.com. And it seems like the makers of the movie share this sentiment. Johnson helped package and ship the coupons to customers, and Fountain placed hologram stickers on some of them to make them look more legitimate. Kristen Bell And Kirby Howell-Baptiste Run A Multi-Million Dollar Coupon Scam In The 'Queenpins' Trailer. "We knew, based on our research on past films, the more we dig into the real lives, it becomes much more serious, much more dramatic," Pullapilly told the, Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile. Ame hissed, "Getting partnered with someone like me. The amount covered all of P&G's losses, for the fake coupons as well as extra manpower needed to deal with the issue. They also turned to the Coupon Information Corporation. On the case to bust them: a supermarket's. Judge Daniel Martin sentenced her to 24 months, as well as seven years probation. The real-life Queenpins: How three Arizona women were busted with $25 MILLION in counterfeit coupons they were selling online - and inspired a new movie starring Kristen Bell Related:Worth Cast & Character Guide: What The Real People Look Like. She is also known for her appearances in Killing Eve and Cruella. The scheme came crashing down after forty businesses, including major companies like Proctor & Gamble, Hershey, and PepsiCo, filed fraud complaints. Eventually, they brought in Phoenix police, who conducted aneight-week investigation. It all sounded so unbelievable and over the top, and we knew the story had the makings for a great comedy., So while the women may not be thrilled to see their pasts dredged up and played for laughs on the big screen, Lake is hopeful that moviegoers wont come away with the wrong idea about creating or using counterfeit coupons. That is the basic premise of Queenpins, a comedy reuniting The Good Placeco-stars Kristen Bell and Kirby Howell-Baptiste as the two leads. His character represents the law enforcementin charge of tracking down the women responsible. The comedy Queenpins is inspired by the largest coupon scam in U.S. history. The idea started just as a way for their two families to make ends meet as they struggled to pay the bills. If you watch the movie 'Queenpins,' you will see, what I believe, is the first film in Hollywood to feature AEW in the film." Furthermore, Paul Walter Hauser reveals that he has actually had minimal wrestling training with several names from The Nightmare Factory including Anthony Ogogo, Preston Vance, and even WWE Hall of Famer Diamond Dallas . The coupons were sold on a site called Savvy Shopper Site, to which interested parties had to be referred or invited directly to use. Watching "Queenpins" is like eating grocery store birthday cake. Notify me of follow-up comments by email. Illegal couponing doesn't seem like ahigh-levelcrime, but the two women manage to grow rich off their scheme. -Investigative Consultants. She also was ordered to pay restitution of up to $5 million. Though the pair face forty-years-to-life, the companies that they victimized clandestinely press the courts for leniency to avoid bad press, resulting in ten days imprisonment plus one year of probation for JoJo and eleven months incarceration (parole eligible in eight) for Connie. Because they arent exactly hardened criminals, they think that the money theyve made through their shell company has to be laundered, so they bought all these high priced items with the intent to just immediately resell them. I have never purchased coupons from a clipping service or an auction site." Queenpinsdebuted in theaters on September 10, 2021. He also explained the counterfeit coupon case to Gaudet and Pullapilly, who sought him out after their curiosity was piqued when they first read about the crime. Lets break it down. Thecomedy Queenpins features a talented cast coming together to tell a crazy true story. Queenpins: Dirigido por Aron Gaudet, Gita Pullapilly. The two women in the movie, Connie Kaminski (Kristen Bell) and JoJo Johnson (Kirby Howell-Baptiste), are not directly based on any of the real-life women.Kristen Bell's character's background of being a former Olympic race walker who turns to couponing after having no luck getting pregnant (and spending tens of thousands on in vitro treatments) is fictional, as is Kirby Howell-Baptiste's character's unsuccessful efforts to make it as a vlogger. The Queenpins true story reveals that there were three women involved in the real-life scheme, not two like in the movie. Because they arent exactly hardened criminals, they think that the money theyve made through their shell company has to be laundered, so they bought all these high priced items with the intent to just immediately resell them. I was very excited when I saw on the front page of the script that was based on a true story. It isvery pleasurable in the moment but likely to leave you feeling empty and a little queasy. Previously, she worked as a singer and songwriter, penning hitslike Eminem and Rihanna's "The Monster" and collaborating with bands such as Florida Georgia Line. 'Queenpins' Review: Suburban Scammers Two cash-strapped neighbors devise a multimillion-dollar coupon swindle in this mildly entertaining comedy. SIGN UP FOR OUR FREE DAILY NEWSLETTER, FIRST TAKE, July 2012, police in Phoenix, Arizona arrested three women, Queenpins Trailer: Kristen Bell and Kirby Howell-Baptiste Are the Robin Hood of Coupons (Video), Netflixs The Sandman TV Series Casts Kirby Howell-Baptiste as Death. She was the only one of the three to receive jail time. This film wasn't deep, and at times it stretched credibility, but it was fun and engaging. The film revolves around an ordinary suburban housewife's desire to forge her own path, which ultimately leads her to the world of scams. The Arizona coupon ring's leader, Robin Ramirez, rented an aircraft hangar to store her cars, 40-foot speedboat, luxury RV, and various off-road toys. 'Queenpins' Plot Summary While the characters in Queenpins are fictional, the crime they came up with is the real deal. While JoJo is released on bail, Rick visits Connie only so he can admonish her, having been informed by Simon that she and JoJo have defrauded over 240 companies of tens of millions of dollars. Review: Scamming Audiences with Sophomoric Humor and Dubious Politics. They joined forces with several other affected companies and hired private investigators to track the source of the fraudulent coupons. She spends her free time drinking coffee and trying to resist the urge to buy any new books before reading the many she already owns. She was sentenced to two years in prison, with credit for 287 days served, and seven years of supervised probation. Jack McBrayerasAgent Park - McBrayer has extensive experience in comedy. They were just two normal women, who felt taken advantage of by major corporations, and genuinely wanted to help other women and families who were struggling. HBOs Rain Dogs Finds Humor, Despair in the Working-Class Mum at its Center, Berlinale Highlights, Part Three: Hummingbirds, Concrete Valley, Afire, The Oneness of All Things: On Sofia Alaouis Animalia, New York International Childrens Film Festival Opens Window to the World. They were a part of a fast-rising category referred to as "pink collar criminals," "nice" suburban women who commit non-violent crimes, mostly fraud or embezzling from businesses or from community organizations like the PTA.