The Arizona Attorney General Office announced this week a settlement against two Arizona telemarketing companies and their owners, Sean Burnett and Jethro Becker, alleged to have defrauded consumers in a “work from home” business opportunity scam.
The lawsuit alleged that the defendants, Superior Marketing Group, LLC, Streamline Online, LLC and their owners, Burnett and Becker, worked together to cheat consumers while selling them an “online shopping mall” website, along with advertising to promote the website. The defendants allegedly told consumers that by purchasing their products and services, they would be an affiliate of Amazon.com and earn substantial commissions from the sale of items. Consumers were also told they could obtain a full refund of fees if they were not happy with the results.
At the time of filing, the Attorney General obtained a restraining order against the defendants and an order that froze their personal and business assets. The settlement agreement, in the form of a Consent Judgment:
• Requires the defendants to comply with the Arizona Consumer Fraud Act and Arizona Telephone Solicitations Act;
• Prohibits the defendants from engaging in the advertising or sale of “business opportunities” in Arizona, or to Arizona consumers;
• Requires the defendants to maintain the confidentiality of consumer’s personal information that they obtained during the course of their alleged illegal activities; and
• Requires the defendants to relinquish all claims to monies in accounts seized by the State.
The terms of the settlement will be monitored by the AG’s Office and can be enforced with a contempt motion brought before the judge who signed the judgment. If the terms of the settlement are not met, the Judge has the authority to hold the non-compliant party in contempt of court with the possibility of incarceration until compliance occurs.
Consumers who believe they were defrauded by a “business opportunity” seller or are contacted by a company that has not complied with the new law should file a complaint with the Attorney General’s Office. To file a consumer complaint, please contact the Arizona Attorney General’s Office Consumer Information & Complaints Unit at (602) 542-5763 / (520) 628-6504 / https://www.azag.gov/complaints/consumer.