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con artists
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con artists
scams
Consumer Alert: Fortune Tellers Cannot Curse You, Do Not Give Them Your Money
Two fortune-tellers in Chicago are in being held in jail in lieu of $750,000 bail each for defrauding customers by convincing them they were cursed, then selling them expensive curse-removal/protection services. Remember, folks, fortune tellers cannot curse you, see your future, turn you into a werewolf, or make you lose horrific amounts of weight. They can, however, take your money. More »
videos
Freddie Mac: Don't Let Fraudsters Steal Your Home
scams
Freddie Mac's Fraud Video Warns Borrowers
Freddie Mac produced this video to educate borrowers who face foreclosure about a fraud scheme where "a con artist will seek out a public notice of foreclosure and approach the potential victim with documents and the promise of sorting out the debt," thereby tricking the homeowner into signing over the deed to the house. More »
polls
Who Should Play Kevin Trudeau In The Inevitable TV Movie?
More than one reader noticed a remarkable similarity between FTC repeat offender and infomercial king Kevin Trudeau and Dallas do-gooder Bobby Ewing—er, Patrick Duffy. Which makes us wonder: if there's a TV movie in the works about Trudeau, and there certainly should be, who should play him? Share the wisdom of a crowd and cast your vote. More »
con artists
Shady Magazine Seller Ordered To Pay Over $7 Million
Kevin Trudeau isn't the only one writhing in the icy grip of justice this week—one-time magazine subscription entrepreneur Richard L. Prochnow was ordered to pay over $7 million a few weeks ago when the U.S. Court of Appeals upheld a judgment from July of 2006. Prochnow ran Direct Sales International (DSI), a bad magazine company that lied to customers and trapped them in a "buying club" that charged monthly fees and was very difficult to cancel. More »
con artists
Infomercial Scammer Kevin Trudeau Found In Contempt Of Court
Kevin Trudeau, well known for all sorts of cons over the years—his most recent one was this diet book—was found in contempt of court last week by a U.S. District Court judge for violating his permanent 2004 injunction. More »
con artists
Crazy Moving Scam In San Jose Area
RipOffReports has two claims—one of which was also sent to us by a reader—about Champions Movers and/or A.S.A.P. Relocations of San Jose, California. Or Fremont, California. That's part of the problem—they seem to be intentionally using a mixture of names and addresses to help hide from what's shaping up to be a terrible reputation.One complaint claims that in June they bumped their quote from $1,070 to $2,460 after they'd loaded up her furniture and boxes, and threatened damage to her belongings if she didn't pay up and sign a new contract on the spot. She paid and signed, but immediately put a stop payment on the check, and she hasn't seen her furniture since. More »
complaints
Bank Of America Let Conwoman Steal My Dead Aunt's Identity And Rob Her Safe Deposit Box
Ariel's wealthy aunt died. When his mom went to open her safe deposit box, which was supposed to hold $300k in bonds and jewels, it was empty. The bank clerk said that it had been emptied that morning, by the aunt... More »
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