NewCardDude
06-14-2004, 06:00 AM
Sara Penora
NewCardNews Staff
BOSTON- Seven civil and criminal law enforcement actions were announced Tuesday by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies against fraudsters in the Greater Boston area who allegedly bilked Internet surfers out of large amounts running into the millions of dollars.
Scams targeted included securities fraud, auction fraud perpetrated at both eBay and Yahoo, and one of those common "watch free TV" deals that was promoted via spam and Web site advertising.
A "discount" pirate access card service operation also was targeted, accused of cramming unauthorized charges onto consumers' credit cards for supposed "unreported re billing" fees.
"Scams on the Internet spread very quickly," said Rodney Bellgrave, director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection. "That's why the DBF and our partners are moving aggressively to shut these schemes down."
One conviction was announced, a Boston case involving Peter Goldman and Amanda Wilcox. Goldman was sentenced May 17 to 12 years in prison and Wilcox was sentenced May 28 to 12 years in prison for, among other things, Internet auction fraud (6 years for stealing by deceit -- charges related to Internet auction fraud -- and 5 years for bad check charges).
The Bureau said that the pirate access card scam required consumers to pay $100 on average and they would be able to decode their satellite television receivers to watch all channels including pay per view without paying a monthly bill.
Most Consumers who sent their money didn't receive their orders. If they received anything, they got a simple software via email that was in most cases, not functional. At the request of the Bureau, a U.S. district court judge prohibited the defendants and a host of individuals in the Boston area, from engaging in further deceptive practices and froze their assets, pending trial.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NewCardNews Staff
BOSTON- Seven civil and criminal law enforcement actions were announced Tuesday by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies against fraudsters in the Greater Boston area who allegedly bilked Internet surfers out of large amounts running into the millions of dollars.
Scams targeted included securities fraud, auction fraud perpetrated at both eBay and Yahoo, and one of those common "watch free TV" deals that was promoted via spam and Web site advertising.
A "discount" pirate access card service operation also was targeted, accused of cramming unauthorized charges onto consumers' credit cards for supposed "unreported re billing" fees.
"Scams on the Internet spread very quickly," said Rodney Bellgrave, director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection. "That's why the DBF and our partners are moving aggressively to shut these schemes down."
One conviction was announced, a Boston case involving Peter Goldman and Amanda Wilcox. Goldman was sentenced May 17 to 12 years in prison and Wilcox was sentenced May 28 to 12 years in prison for, among other things, Internet auction fraud (6 years for stealing by deceit -- charges related to Internet auction fraud -- and 5 years for bad check charges).
The Bureau said that the pirate access card scam required consumers to pay $100 on average and they would be able to decode their satellite television receivers to watch all channels including pay per view without paying a monthly bill.
Most Consumers who sent their money didn't receive their orders. If they received anything, they got a simple software via email that was in most cases, not functional. At the request of the Bureau, a U.S. district court judge prohibited the defendants and a host of individuals in the Boston area, from engaging in further deceptive practices and froze their assets, pending trial.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------