DENVER (CN) - A mother and son bilked magazine subscribers of thousands of dollars in a brazen telemarketing scam, the Colorado attorney general claims in court.
Attorney General John Suthers sued Raymond B. Jones Jr., his mother, Cora Jones, and a long list of their businesses, in Denver County Court.
Defendants include Publications@Mile High, Publications@Mile High 2, Subscription Solutions, C&R Marketing & Associates, 5280 Publication LLC, and Magazine Man.
Raymond, of Denver, and his mom, of suburban Morrison, are accused of duping victims of as much as $1,300 at a time by calling them, pretending to be the publisher of a magazine to which they subscribe, and asking to "verify" some financial information. Then the Joneses call that a "contract" and defraud them of up to $1,300, the attorney general says.
The state claims the Joneses have been running the scam since 2007.
"Defendants' nominal business is the solicitation of magazine 'packages' over the telephone," the complaint states. "However, defendants' true business model is to trick consumers into providing or confirming their confidential financial information and deceive consumers into expensive, duplicative 'contracts' for magazine solicitations valued at up to $1,300."
The Joneses do this by buying "lead lists" with addresses and telephone numbers of real magazine subscribers, then hiring telemarketers to offer them bogus deals in a closely scripted three-step process, the state says.
"Defendants' sales calls are carefully orchestrated into three steps," the complaint states. "In the first two steps, defendants pretend to be the company that is currently providing magazines to the consumer, tell the consumer they are calling to verify and update the consumer's accounts, and trick the consumer into disclosing his or her confidential financial information. Defendants also use the first two steps to prime the consumer for the third step: a recorded 'verification' that defendants will later claim is an 'oral contract' under which the consumer has agreed to purchase the defendants' magazine subscription package. Defendants utilize a distinct script for each of the three steps."
As if that's not enough, the Joneses "warn" their victims that other, unscrupulous companies might try to sell them subscriptions they don't want, the state says.
"Defendants refer to the first step as the 'Sales Pitch.' This step is completed by a low-level and relatively unskilled telemarketer. This telemarketer calls a consumer and begins by falsely telling the consumer, 'I'm calling with the credit department for the publishers we are the people who send the magazines out there to you.'
"Next, the telemarketer assures the consumer that 'I'm not calling to collect any money ... we're actually calling to pre-warn you. To let you know that if any other company should happen to give you a call and want you to add on, extend or renew your account with their company, we are asking that you do not.'
"The telemarketer then falsely tells the consumers that he/she is 'still a preferred customer set on your magazines for the 60 months of service at $3.99 a week.'
"The telemarketer then asks the consumer a series of questions, including 'How do you make you [sic] payments for your magazines? Visa, Mastercard, American Express, or Discover?' After getting this information, the telemarketer puts the consumer on hold and transfers him/her to the 'capper,' who completes the second and third steps."