LEGO reseller Bricks & Minifigs is attempting to resolve a controversial situation following allegations of a “stolen” LEGO Star Wars collection. Company CEO Ammon McNeff has confirmed that the company is ready to sit down with Bryan Mansell and his father, who have accused Bricks & Minifigs of essentially stealing a LEGO collection they valued at $200,000 through a failed consignment deal.
McNeff notes it is willing to not only give back his collection, but also any LEGO Star Wars set in the store regardless of if it belongs to him or not. Additionally, the company will also drop the lawsuit against him, where he is named as a co-defendant in a defamation and harassment lawsuit against YouTuber Reckless Ben (we’ll get back to this).
“[…] Bryan, we continue our offer to sit down with you and are prepared to discuss dropping the lawsuit against you,” said McNeff. “Let’s go through the spreadsheets and POS data together and ensure you are made whole monetarily and ensure that whatever Star Wars LEGO was or remains in the Salem store, whether you identify as yours or not, you can have it. We will ensure you are compensated for anything unaccounted for, including what Ms. Law/Gorman failed to compensate you for without your knowledge. We’re ready when you are.”
The company will also permanently shut down its Salem, Oregon store where the drama took place and will mutually part ways with franchise owners Brandon Best and Joshua Johnson “due to a devastating social media campaign.” The two were prominently featured in a series of YouTube videos from creator Reckless Ben.
The company also claimed that the previous store owner, Chrystal Gorman, conducted an unauthorized consignment (something that Gorman has contested by showing consignments were allowed in her franchisee contract). Bricks & Minifigs also accused Gorman of “gross negligence” and stated that the way she managed the store is what created the conflict.
“Due to our commitment to a heightened level of due diligence in our investigation, and lack of formal documentation produced by Mr. Mansell and the former franchisee, Ms. Law/Gorman, we have found critical data including three separate Star Wars Lot spreadsheets,” said Matt McNeff, COO, Bricks & Minifigs. “These included an unknown, but accessible email account maintained by Ms. Law/Gorman. This evidence confirmed the new incoming franchisees who took over the location were not aware of, nor prepared for the responsibilities of taking over a store from a forensic accounting review standpoint.
“This led to due diligence issues in coming to resolution with Mr. Mansell. First, an ex-franchisee still had connections to, and in one instance, ownership of company-marked data through a personal email account. When a collector came in, identified himself, and what he believed to be a ‘formal’ albeit undisclosed relationship with a former franchisee, it is unfortunate that Ms. Law Gorman was not upfront about it. We are disappointed this situation was not made explicitly clear, that should have happened much sooner than today. That’s not acceptable, and we’re not going to pretend otherwise.”
If you’ve missed out on this saga, last month, a YouTuber named Reckless Ben posted a video documenting a rather absurd situation revolving around popular LEGO reseller, Bricks & Minifigs. A man named Bryan Mansell tried to sell his elderly father’s expansive LEGO Star Wars collection. Mansell claimed that the collection was valued at around $200,000 and entered into a consignment deal with a Bricks & Minifigs franchise in Oregon, allowing the store to sell the sets on his behalf for a cut of the revenue.
Well, at some point in this transaction, things went very south. Then-owner Chrystal Gorman alleged that she was pushed out of her role as owner of the franchise to make way for new owners, who refused to honor the consignment agreement, but kept the LEGO. The new owners, Brandon Best and Joshua Johnson, allegedly refused to work with Mansell on returning his LEGO or compensate him, prompting him to contact Ben for help.
The situation unraveled in dramatic fashion, with local police allegedly failing to assist Ben or Mansell, even when it came to serving legal papers to Best and Johnson. Ben also alleged that Best and Johnson weaponized the police against him after they pulled him over, claiming they received a call that Ben possessed heroin. After searching him, however, no drugs were found.
Ben was later arrested for stalking charges, but let out on bail by a judge. However, shortly thereafter, a warrant was issued for Ben’s arrest again prompting him to allegedly flee to Mexico where he has since been living off of money from his Patreon. Bricks & Minifigs then issued a legal notice to Patreon, requesting Ben’s account be shut down. Patreon CEO Jack Conte released a video denying the request before telling the LEGO reseller to “stuff it,” and invited them to sue Patreon if it feels inclined.
Needless to say, it’s a pretty absurd situation. Of course, it remains to be seen if Mansell accepts Bricks & Minifigs offer to resolve the situation or if any other drama will unfold.
Cade Onder is a freelancer for IGN’s news team. He covers all things entertainment, including gaming, film, and more. You can find him on Twitter @Cade_Onder.
