History Main / BribeBackfire

* Back when Senate Majority leader Harry Reid was merely head of the Nevada Gaming Commission, he helped the FBI videotape Jack Gordon offering him a $12,000 bribe. According to newspaper accounts, the arrest was interrupted when he tried to strangle Gordon, saying "You son of a bitch, you tried to bribe me!" — and had to be pulled off by the alarmed (but amused) FBI agents.

* In "The Witness" by Creator/NoraRoberts smalltown shady bussinessman subltly tried to bribe Abigail Lowery with case of 10.000 dolars to change her statement of his son vandalizing police car in front of her house and trying to assault Brooks Gleason, owner of car (smalltown police chief and Abigail's boyfriend), while high as kite. This backfired:

* In ''VideoGame/{{BitLife}}'', you can bribe the police if they are about to arrest you. Sometimes, it will succeed and you'll be able to walk away. Other times, the police will either reject the money or arrest you anyways, and put a "bribery" in your crimes so you'd be sentenced to harsher punishments.

** In the Season Two episode "Truth and Reconciliation", Michael says that backfire is a built-in risk to any bribe:

* At the end of the Marisa Berenson episode of ''Series/TheMuppetShow'', after ducking out of a RealFakeWedding Miss Piggy had tried to rope him into, Kermit is forced to run from the angry pig and tries to take shelter in Stanler and Waldorf's box, saying he'll give them free tickets to the next show if they hide him. Unfortunately, it's been well-established that Stanler and Waldorf don't like the show[[note]]despite always going[[/note]], and as a result, they throw Kermit over the edge of the balcony.

* At the end of one episode of ''Series/TheMuppetShow'', while being chased by an angry Miss Piggy, Kermit takes shelter in Stanler and Waldorf's box, saying he'll give them free tickets to the next show if they hide him. Unfortunately, it's been well-established that Stanler and Waldorf don't like the show[[note]]despite always going[[/note]], and as a result, they throw Kermit over the balcony to his fate.

* The medieval Chinese folk hero, Bao Zheng, was so viciously opposed to corruption that he refused to have family members buried next to his grave if they so much as ''accepted'' a bribe.

* When Byzantine Emperor Anastasius I died in 518 without an heir, the head chamberlain Amantius (who was a eunuch and therefore could not become emperor himself) tried to get his candidate Theocritus elected as emperor by buying the support of other officials (and controlling a large military force). One official that Amantius tried to bribe was the commander of the palace guard, Justin, who simply took the money and used it support his own candidacy. Justin was elected emperor as Justin I and had Amantius and Theocritus executed.

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--> '''Prison Guard:''' "One ticket stub from Tillie's Punctured Romance. Envelope marked bribe; Empty." ''Guard takes money with smug smile on face''

'''Mr. Burns:''' Is there some confusion about this?\\

* The medieval Chinese folk hero, Bao Zheng, was so viciously opposed to corruption that he refused to have family members buried next to his grave if they so much as ''accept'' a bribe.

If you're really unlucky, the individual who you're trying to bribe may not be easily dissuaded, and may in fact [[ForTheEvulz want to do horrible and illegal things to]] ''[[ForTheEvulz you]]'' [[ForTheEvulz anyway, regardless of the money offered]]. At the very least, the individual may just throw the money back in your face just to see the shock of the briber deal with a person who cannot be bought. Even if he takes the money, he may just be stringing you along to get evidence of the bribe (or to just screw you over by taking your money and giving you absolutely jack squat in return). Another thing to keep in mind: Anyone that ''you'' can bribe can also be bribed by someone else, so don't put too much trust in them.