The sting took place on 15 December 1985, when Washington Redskins were due to play the Cincinnati Bengals.
The fugitives who had been targeted by the US Marshals service were told they had been randomly selected from a list of Washington DC residents to receive two free tickets.
The game was due to start at 1pm, but the apparent competition winners were invited to show up in the morning to receive their tickets. They would be transported by bus to and from the game that afternoon. Or so they were told.
"We sent out invitations to a little under 3,000 fugitives, to a brunch at the Washington Convention Centre," recalled Toby Roche in a 2016 documentary about the sting.
Roche was the chief deputy of the US Marshals at the time - but for the purposes of Operation Flagship, he was posing as an event usher.
"My role were to make sure that the fugitives who turned up were in fact fugitives," he said, explaining that the agents had code words for the level of criminals.
"A 'confirmed winner' was someone who was wanted. A 'double winner' was a dangerous person; someone who'd had aggravated assault, murder or robbery."
His colleague Bob Leschorn, the chief deputy of enforcement in the US Marshals, was posing as the CEO of the fictional US cable TV network - Flagship International Sports Television.
"We had 119 extremely lucky individuals, who, by chance, were all wanted on criminal warrants," Leschorn recalled with a smile.
But instead of heading to the game, he said, "they won a trip to the DC jail".The agents used reverse psychology to help coax as many of the criminals to the event as possible.
The winners were told over the phone that if they didn't redeem their tickets and bring their ID, the prize would be given to someone else.
"And that really [made them say], 'wait a minute, you're not going to give my Redskin tickets away, I'll be there'," Leschorn explained.
With the stage set, the US Marshals ensured everything surrounding the fake TV station looked visually authentic.
Marshals were dressed in tuxedos and told to smile politely at the criminals they usually chase. Several of the female officers were even enlisted to be cheerleaders.
When the fugitives arrived, the cheerleaders would be physically affectionate with them, putting their arms around them and so on. In reality, they were patting them down to make sure they weren't carrying weapons.
Not that there was much risk of that, noted Howard Safir, associate director of operations at the US Marshals, who was posing as marketing expert for the day.
"Sting operations are a safe way to arrest fugitives," he pointed out. "They usually will not come with weapons, their minds are diverted, they're in a festive mood."
'Hook, line and sinker'
Once they had arrived and confirmed their identities, the fugitives were taken in groups of about 15 to a hall with a stage.
"We've got a big surprise for you," said the speaker. "Everybody's under arrest."
The criminals were surrounded, and escorted out in handcuffs. In total, 101 arrests were made.
"It was party time," US marshal for the District of Columbia Herbert M. Rutherford told the Associated Press afterwards. "And they fell for it hook, line and sinker."
Some of the fugitives struggled to comprehend what had happened, even after they'd been caught.
As the buses carrying the fugitives were pulling away, one asked: "Do we still get to go to the game?"