Scamming at the Gate: NRG Park Employees Accused of Stealing from 7,000 Customers
A brazen scheme at one of Houston's most popular parks has left thousands of visitors reeling. According to authorities, two NRG Park parking attendants and a third attendant who was arrested earlier this year are accused of swindling over $200,000 from unsuspecting customers.
The scam involved the use of Square payment devices to collect parking fees, but investigators say the accounts were actually being run by the corrupt attendants themselves – not the park. The ringleader, Reginald Smith, allegedly racked up $25,970 in fraudulent charges between December 2024 and March 2025, a fraction of the total losses.
Smith, who has four felony convictions in Texas, including robbery and credit card abuse, was caught in the act on March 19 after a sting operation. His accomplices, Vincent Ward and Taelor Miller, are also under suspicion for their roles in the scam, with Ward accused of charging $126,513 and Miller $58,523 over a seven-month period.
The scheme appears to have gone undetected by park officials until August 2024, when a Texans fan was turned away from his paid parking spot. A subsequent review of the system revealed that multiple attendants were running unauthorized accounts, including Smith's accomplices.
NRG Park has issued tips for visitors to avoid falling victim to similar scams in the future, advising them to confirm posted parking prices before paying and to scan official QR codes displayed on signage to ensure a digital receipt.
A brazen scheme at one of Houston's most popular parks has left thousands of visitors reeling. According to authorities, two NRG Park parking attendants and a third attendant who was arrested earlier this year are accused of swindling over $200,000 from unsuspecting customers.
The scam involved the use of Square payment devices to collect parking fees, but investigators say the accounts were actually being run by the corrupt attendants themselves – not the park. The ringleader, Reginald Smith, allegedly racked up $25,970 in fraudulent charges between December 2024 and March 2025, a fraction of the total losses.
Smith, who has four felony convictions in Texas, including robbery and credit card abuse, was caught in the act on March 19 after a sting operation. His accomplices, Vincent Ward and Taelor Miller, are also under suspicion for their roles in the scam, with Ward accused of charging $126,513 and Miller $58,523 over a seven-month period.
The scheme appears to have gone undetected by park officials until August 2024, when a Texans fan was turned away from his paid parking spot. A subsequent review of the system revealed that multiple attendants were running unauthorized accounts, including Smith's accomplices.
NRG Park has issued tips for visitors to avoid falling victim to similar scams in the future, advising them to confirm posted parking prices before paying and to scan official QR codes displayed on signage to ensure a digital receipt.
. Like, what's next? Are people gonna start stealing from each other at the park's food stalls? 
I'm pretty sure I saw a sign last time I went there saying "we accept all major credit cards"... but I guess that doesn't mean squat if someone's just gonna scam you out of your cash 
. Guess it's always good to be on your toes, right?
. I mean, $200k is a huge amount and it's all because of two ppl who were supposed to be doing their jobs properly 
. And the ringleader had some serious baggage too - four felony convictions? That's wild 
. At least they're being transparent now and giving tips to visitors on how to avoid falling victim to scams again 
. Let's hope the scammers get what's coming to them 
.
. It highlights the need for increased security measures at public venues like NRG Park to prevent such egregious exploitation 
.
. How could they have missed this blatant scheme? The scheme's success was only possible because it went undetected until a curious fan stumbled upon the issue in August 2024 
.
. However, I'd argue that these measures should have been implemented long ago to prevent such incidents from occurring 
.
... I remember when I went to NRG Park back in 2012, it was like, a totally legit experience, you know? You'd pay for parking, and they'd give you a receipt, and that's it. I'm not surprised the scammers could find ways to exploit the system, but still, $200k is crazy 
... I hope they get busted for good, but also, what's with the lack of oversight at NRG Park? Shouldn't be that hard to detect this kind of thing? 
I would be shocked too! The fact that these people were able to scam so much money by running their own personal accounts using the park's payment system is just mind-blowing. It's not like they had to resort to violence or threats to get away with it, which is even more disturbing 
. NRG Park needs to do a better job of monitoring their systems and rooting out corrupt employees ASAP 
.
this is crazy! 200k is a lot of money and I'm surprised it took this long for someone to catch on. I mean, who swipes thousands of dollars in parking fees without anyone noticing? 
. And what's with the "four felony convictions" thing? You'd think that'd be enough to keep someone in line, but I guess not 
. The fact that someone can so easily exploit that system and walk away with thousands of dollars is just mind-blowing... it's like, how far would you go for money? And what does that say about us as a society? Are we really that desperate to get ahead? 
I mean, can you believe this?! Two NRG Park employees are accused of scamming over 7k customers out of $200k! It's just crazy how they were able to get away with it for so long - even the park officials didn't notice until one guy got turned away from his paid spot. 
I'm glad they caught Reginald Smith and the others, but still, $200k is just mind-boggling. You gotta be careful when paying with those Square payment devices - you never know who's behind the screen! 
.
.
. hopefully this sends a message to anyone thinking about getting in on that action: you won't get away with it 
like, what's wrong with 'em? i mean, i know the guy who got caught was already on probation for some serious crimes, but still... $200k is a lot of money 
and it's not like the park didn't notice till one person got denied entry