Telemarketing
fraud in CA offers
unnecessary expensive service claiming to remove
seniors from calling lists
May
26, 2004--A
78 year old Woodland resident called
police to report being scammed over the phone.An investigation revealed that the man had actually fallen for
an overpriced telemarketing scheme that is constructed to hold great
appeal to the elderly and the uninformed.
The
persuasive caller promised to get the victim off of telemarketers’
lists and to stop other annoying phone calls.For a one time charge of $341.21, the caller claimed his
company, Consumer Consulting Group (CCG), would put the victim’s
phone number on the “Do Not Call” list and send the victim a
device to eliminate any telemarketing calls that might sneak through.To clench the deal, the victim was promised $500 in free
grocery coupons as an inducement for signing up.
The
victim consented to a taped sales agreement, during which the victim
gave the caller his checking account number and personal access
information.This was to
allow CCG, to take the money directly from his bank account.
After
the investigating officer phoned CCG, their customer service
representative agreed to void the contract and destroy all documents
from the transaction.The
victim had already called his bank to stop the transaction before he
called police, so there was no monetary loss.
No
charges have been filed at this time, but the case will be reviewed by
Adult Protective Services and the Yolo County District Attorney’s
Office to see if further action is warranted.
Remember,
anyone may have their phone numbers listed on the National Do Not Call
Registry for free by going tohttps://www.donotcall.gov
Devices
to zap telemarketer’s calls are readily available for as little as
$24 and free manufacturer’s grocery coupons can be ordered on the
internet or even printed out right at home.