Americans who weren’t able to get free tickets to see Pope Francis may still have an opportunity, if they’re willing to open up their wallets.
A number of scalpers are hawking tickets to see the Pope in New York and Philadelphia on Craigslist, the Associated Press reports. The sellers are bundling the tickets with innocuous items such as rosary beads or train passes, and then jacking up the price. Asking prices have been as high as $175 in some instances.
Church leaders have asked sites to ban the reselling of the free tickets, and New York Mayor Bill de Blasio called the “practice” disgusting. Online auction site eBay (EBAY) has complied with the request, but the tickets appear to still be available on Craigslist.
Eighty thousand free tickets to see the Pope in New York’s Central Park were made available by organizers. In Philadelphia, 30,000 tickets were given out to see the Pope for a Mass, a speech at Independence Hall and the Festival of Families.
