I am looking for advice.
I haven’t seen any reports of anyone experiencing what I have.
Sorry for the length of this, but there has been a lot going on.
I was thrilled to find TUG and signed up for the access to personal help, but don't know how to access that.
This seems to be a possible place to start.
THANKS FOR YOUR PATIENCE!
==========
Back in 2020 I got a call from a man saying that he was from the Federal Prosecutor for Consumer’s Office and he was investigating fraudulent buyers of timeshares. I told him of some companies that had contacted me and he confirmed that some of them were on his list. He gave me his number and suggested that we call him if we were contacted again in the future by any others. I never heard from him again, and never called him. He seemed legitimate. It was good to feel like there was someone to call if I felt I was being scammed.
==========
Back on May 25, 2024, I got a similar call from a lady (I’ll call her CAT…Cancun ATtorney) who claimed to be from the Mexican Federal System, investigating special financial crimes. She wondered if we’d been contacted by people offering to rent/sell our “property” in Cancun. She said that no one has the right to contact us by phone or email. They should not have access to our personal contact info. Anyone who does this is scamming (not a valid company). She said that Sunset is defrauding people too during their sale tactics by selling the idea of property when it is really just a timeshare service that they provide.
CAT sent an email (from feai@asuntos.internos.mx … internal affairs Mexico).
She says she’s a prosecuting attorney with Fiscalia Especializada en Asuntos Internos (Internal Affairs) a judicial branch of the Mexican Federal System.
{{{
We encourage anyone who has been affected to any degree to address the situation by sharing information that may be useful to the case.
We are issuing you the "Unidad de Asuntos Internos" report document, you may return said document to our email address with the information it requires.
}}}
The address was listed as:
Blvd. Adolfo López Mateos 2836,
Edificio 101, Tizapán San Ángel,
Progreso Tizapán, Álvaro Obregón,
01090, Ciudad de México.
Google Maps shows it to be “Fiscalía Especializada de Asuntos Internos de la FGR” (Specialized Prosecutor's Office for Internal Affairs of the FGR).
==========
I sent CAT the list of 14 companies that have contacted me regarding my timeshare, and gave summaries of the 41 or so email interactions I’ve had with them.
==========
CAT called on May 27 to say that many of the companies that have contacted us are on their list of scammers. She surprised me by her focus on Sunset itself, making it sound like they want to present a case against Sunset and hope to get money back for us. She said not to pay any more maintenance fees to Sunset.
==========
On June 6, CAT called to say that the court would deal with our item on June 18, 2024 in Mexico City. She said that we were allowed to be present if we wanted to be there. I asked if there would be any cost to us for this process. She said that the government (her services) would not cost us anything (after all, the government is really the ones who are pursuing this. We are just supplying them with information to support their case). She said that we would have to deal with the banks regarding any money we were to be "awarded" as a result of these actions.
==========
On June 25, CAT called, saying that the court date has been changed to June 28th since they were unable to contact us on the 18th. It sounds like we need to be "callable" for the court to deal with our case. This was not clearly conveyed to me before. I had clearly told her that we were not going to be around on June 18th, and that she could email me with any info from the court meeting. This is the first time she's mentioned anything about the need for us to be part of the court session.
Turns out that it was supposed to be a deposition, and I was to be part of it via phone so I could be asked questions. Sunset had been subpoenaed to have a representative there too.
==========
On June 27, I got called by the court. (I wish it had been a Zoom call, but it was only audio). We all identified ourselves.
The clerk began with a statement of "my" complaints. It sounded like I had been harassed by emails and calls, and had received many false promises. I was a bit surprised at how intense it sounded. I was then asked several questions...which also surprised me. "When you first went to Cancun, were you expecting to buy a timeshare?" (No.) "When were you at the resort last?" (possibly 2018). "How long was the sales presentation?" (maybe 4 hours the first time, including a tour, and 2 hours the second one. My wife and I both wondered if 6 hours was more like it for the first one). "How many calls have you received?" (I assumed that meant from scammers, so I counted about 41). "Have you felt pressured to buy?" (Something like that. I said YES.) There may have been other questions too.
Then the Sunset rep was allowed to ask questions. He really came at me, essentially demanding to know how Sunset had broken the contract, why I was upset with Sunset, when so many hundreds of people are thrilled with it. I replied that I was very happy with the vacations we’ve had with Sunset, but that it was the administration that I was very disappointed with. Promises or exaggerations made during the sales presentations. Things that were “promised” but did not end up in the contracts. He kept pointing out that I’d signed the contracts. Surely I’d had time to review them. When I tried to describe things I’d been disappointed with and found Sunset to essentially shut us out, he interrupted and said that none of that was relevant. He began to act very unprofessional, questioning my “manhood” and calling my representative “Barbie”. I couldn’t help but smile at this. It all seemed unreal. CAT objected and the judge pulled things together. Sunset made an offer, to keep this from going further in the court. I was sort of in shock, because I had not come into this thinking that it was about me. I thought that I was helping to stop scammers in general. CAT corrected me. Sunset was being “fined” for letting my private info get out to the scammers. It was a huge amount (more than what we had paid for our contracts with Sunset).
One stipulation that the Sunset rep made a point to have put on the record was that Sunset would not have to pay any of the taxes associated with this award. (This caught my attention. I know that taxes are something used to tie up money and get more money sent to Mexico).
==========
A day later, I received an email from CAT containing the Judicial Notification. It was in Spanish and seemed to have the “Tribunal Superior De Justice de la ciudad de Mexico” seal. I used Google Translate on it.
It named the Sunset representative and gave him the label “Representative of Promotora Sunset Beach Club, S.A. of C.V.”
It named CAT, my representative, and gave her the label “Representative of the Internal Affairs Unit.”
It named the judge and said, “THIRD CIVIL JUDGE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE”
There was no mention of the request by Sunset to not have anything to do with paying taxes.
“This signed sheet corresponds to the Collaboration Agreement to develop a Mediation Program, by the Court Superior Court of Justice and the Judicial Council, both of Mexico City, for those affected.”
==========
NOTE that I have googled CAT and the name of the judge. Both bring up court documents signed by them, and pictures of them. These all seem legit, but are they just posing as these valid people? I got no results when searching for the Sunset rep’s name.
==========
On July 1, CAT called to say that the banks had tried to contact us. I told her it’s a Canadian holiday and we were away.
We talked a bit.
I was amazed to find that after all of this, we would still have our contracts with Sunset. We still would have access to our Sunset timeshare. We would NOT have to pay any more maintenance fees, and we would NOT be able to sell our contracts.
This all sounds weird. I want to get rid of the contracts. I don’t want to have anything more to do with Sunset.
I begin to wonder whether someone out there has or is gathering info so that they can have access to our contracts and use them in our place. If that’s the case then it would make sense that they don’t want us to sell or terminate the contracts.
I’ve asked CAT about getting documents to prove we don’t have to pay any more maintenance fees and was told that all such documents will be provided later (seemingly after we get involved with the bank).
==========
On July 2 I got a call from a manager at the Bank of Mexico
He asked for our case number (which I was able to find).
He told me the $USD amount that was awarded to us on June 27, 2024.
He says that the USD must be converted to pesos (17 pesos per USD) because only companies can have USD accounts.
He said that the money must be put into a CUSTODIAN ACCOUNT (not a regular account...is just for holding money for transfer...no interest).
The award amount surpasses limits, so it requires insurance of some kind.
He said that there will be taxes of some kind applied, but that they cannot be paid out of the funds in the account. THIS IS WHAT TRIGGERED ME. THIS IS WHAT WE HAVE BEEN EXPECTING TO HEAR BECAUSE THIS IS WHERE OTHERS HAVE BEEN SCAMMED OUT OF MONEY AND HAVE NEVER ENDED UP RECEIVING THE ORIGINAL MONEY THEY WERE PROMISED EITHER.
I asked if there would be signed documentation explaining all of this. He essentially said, "not right now" and seemed reluctant to go into it.
He said that the next step was to make a decision about how to transfer the money. He's sending a document to be filled out for that.
==========
On July 2, I received an email from Banxico MX (worldbanking@banxico.solutions) asking me to fill out an “Application for Foreigner Account Activation”
I didn’t fill it out. Wanted to do some research first.
LEGAL ADDRESS OF THE BANK OF MEXICO
Avenida 5 de Mayo 2, Colonia Centro, Código postal 06000, Alcaldía Cuauhtémoc, Ciudad de México, México
{{{ NOTE that the "Manager" has a slightly different address.
Av. 5 de Mayo, No. 2, Col. Centro. C.P. 06059 Del. Cuauhtémoc, Ciudad de México, CDMX.
Though it is very similar.
}}}
EMAIL ADDRESS
Manager's address ends in "@banxico.solutions" rather than "banxico.org.mx"?
On the Banco de Mexico official site (banxico.org.mx) I found a document called [Warning: Fraudulent communications and false Internet domains].
"Banco de México does not engage in financial transactions with the general public."
"Does not participate in any program related with compensation payments or reimbursements to third parties or others of a similar nature."
"Does not participate in, or has any relationship with, any type of operation associated with timeshare schemes offered or marketed by various companies."
==========
On July 3, CAT called to check into whether we’d given the bank our info, and asked “Why not? Do you have questions?”
I mentioned that the Mexican bank states it does not deal with individuals or with timeshares. She said that that is true, but this is a court issue. She said that the bank guy would not be friendly in answering questions because that is not part of his job. She said that if we didn't create a custodial account then our only option would be to use a certified cheque. That would not, however, get rid of the need to pay taxes. A custodial account is only meant to exist for a maximum of 15 days. It's there to get the job done.
CAT let slip out a mention of 16% at one point, which I took to be what the taxes would amount to. That's would be a huge amount (over $15000USD). I told her that we could not afford to pay that. She just said that it's her job to make sure it happens and that we get the help we need. Implied that the government would be approached to take some action to help.
CAT said a few times that she's our government representative down there since we have not chosen to show up. We could show up and that would make her job easier and easier for us to confirm all that's going on down there. That statement doesn't help though. How easy is it to go and be there?
==========
On July 3, my wife and I went to our bank here in Canada to ask about the Bank of Mexico and the custodian/foreigner account. We showed her the application. She seemed very skeptical. She said that "there was no such thing" as a temporary account like this. She said that it looked like they were activating an account on our behalf. Implied that it was questionable. Sounds like she would not do it herself.
She suggested that we try to authenticate the court document (find out the courthouse location and verify that they'd had this deposition).
She also suggested talking to the Mexican Embassy.
I did try to figure out how to access the Mexican Embassy in Toronto, but just got confused.
Signed up for TUG, and am now trying to submit a request for help/advice.
==========
Note that I’ve been reluctant to specify names of people, in case it would complicate things for us legally. I want to protect the innocent if this is a valid case.
As things are, I’m inclined to just stop this whole series of events in their tracks and take it no further. If it’s legit, then that would be a shame, but if it’s not, then the repercussions would be way worse.
==========
SOME CONCERNS THAT I’VE IDENTIFIED:
I haven’t seen any reports of anyone experiencing what I have.
Sorry for the length of this, but there has been a lot going on.
I was thrilled to find TUG and signed up for the access to personal help, but don't know how to access that.
This seems to be a possible place to start.
THANKS FOR YOUR PATIENCE!
==========
Back in 2020 I got a call from a man saying that he was from the Federal Prosecutor for Consumer’s Office and he was investigating fraudulent buyers of timeshares. I told him of some companies that had contacted me and he confirmed that some of them were on his list. He gave me his number and suggested that we call him if we were contacted again in the future by any others. I never heard from him again, and never called him. He seemed legitimate. It was good to feel like there was someone to call if I felt I was being scammed.
==========
Back on May 25, 2024, I got a similar call from a lady (I’ll call her CAT…Cancun ATtorney) who claimed to be from the Mexican Federal System, investigating special financial crimes. She wondered if we’d been contacted by people offering to rent/sell our “property” in Cancun. She said that no one has the right to contact us by phone or email. They should not have access to our personal contact info. Anyone who does this is scamming (not a valid company). She said that Sunset is defrauding people too during their sale tactics by selling the idea of property when it is really just a timeshare service that they provide.
CAT sent an email (from feai@asuntos.internos.mx … internal affairs Mexico).
She says she’s a prosecuting attorney with Fiscalia Especializada en Asuntos Internos (Internal Affairs) a judicial branch of the Mexican Federal System.
{{{
We encourage anyone who has been affected to any degree to address the situation by sharing information that may be useful to the case.
We are issuing you the "Unidad de Asuntos Internos" report document, you may return said document to our email address with the information it requires.
}}}
The address was listed as:
Blvd. Adolfo López Mateos 2836,
Edificio 101, Tizapán San Ángel,
Progreso Tizapán, Álvaro Obregón,
01090, Ciudad de México.
Google Maps shows it to be “Fiscalía Especializada de Asuntos Internos de la FGR” (Specialized Prosecutor's Office for Internal Affairs of the FGR).
==========
I sent CAT the list of 14 companies that have contacted me regarding my timeshare, and gave summaries of the 41 or so email interactions I’ve had with them.
==========
CAT called on May 27 to say that many of the companies that have contacted us are on their list of scammers. She surprised me by her focus on Sunset itself, making it sound like they want to present a case against Sunset and hope to get money back for us. She said not to pay any more maintenance fees to Sunset.
==========
On June 6, CAT called to say that the court would deal with our item on June 18, 2024 in Mexico City. She said that we were allowed to be present if we wanted to be there. I asked if there would be any cost to us for this process. She said that the government (her services) would not cost us anything (after all, the government is really the ones who are pursuing this. We are just supplying them with information to support their case). She said that we would have to deal with the banks regarding any money we were to be "awarded" as a result of these actions.
==========
On June 25, CAT called, saying that the court date has been changed to June 28th since they were unable to contact us on the 18th. It sounds like we need to be "callable" for the court to deal with our case. This was not clearly conveyed to me before. I had clearly told her that we were not going to be around on June 18th, and that she could email me with any info from the court meeting. This is the first time she's mentioned anything about the need for us to be part of the court session.
Turns out that it was supposed to be a deposition, and I was to be part of it via phone so I could be asked questions. Sunset had been subpoenaed to have a representative there too.
==========
On June 27, I got called by the court. (I wish it had been a Zoom call, but it was only audio). We all identified ourselves.
The clerk began with a statement of "my" complaints. It sounded like I had been harassed by emails and calls, and had received many false promises. I was a bit surprised at how intense it sounded. I was then asked several questions...which also surprised me. "When you first went to Cancun, were you expecting to buy a timeshare?" (No.) "When were you at the resort last?" (possibly 2018). "How long was the sales presentation?" (maybe 4 hours the first time, including a tour, and 2 hours the second one. My wife and I both wondered if 6 hours was more like it for the first one). "How many calls have you received?" (I assumed that meant from scammers, so I counted about 41). "Have you felt pressured to buy?" (Something like that. I said YES.) There may have been other questions too.
Then the Sunset rep was allowed to ask questions. He really came at me, essentially demanding to know how Sunset had broken the contract, why I was upset with Sunset, when so many hundreds of people are thrilled with it. I replied that I was very happy with the vacations we’ve had with Sunset, but that it was the administration that I was very disappointed with. Promises or exaggerations made during the sales presentations. Things that were “promised” but did not end up in the contracts. He kept pointing out that I’d signed the contracts. Surely I’d had time to review them. When I tried to describe things I’d been disappointed with and found Sunset to essentially shut us out, he interrupted and said that none of that was relevant. He began to act very unprofessional, questioning my “manhood” and calling my representative “Barbie”. I couldn’t help but smile at this. It all seemed unreal. CAT objected and the judge pulled things together. Sunset made an offer, to keep this from going further in the court. I was sort of in shock, because I had not come into this thinking that it was about me. I thought that I was helping to stop scammers in general. CAT corrected me. Sunset was being “fined” for letting my private info get out to the scammers. It was a huge amount (more than what we had paid for our contracts with Sunset).
One stipulation that the Sunset rep made a point to have put on the record was that Sunset would not have to pay any of the taxes associated with this award. (This caught my attention. I know that taxes are something used to tie up money and get more money sent to Mexico).
==========
A day later, I received an email from CAT containing the Judicial Notification. It was in Spanish and seemed to have the “Tribunal Superior De Justice de la ciudad de Mexico” seal. I used Google Translate on it.
It named the Sunset representative and gave him the label “Representative of Promotora Sunset Beach Club, S.A. of C.V.”
It named CAT, my representative, and gave her the label “Representative of the Internal Affairs Unit.”
It named the judge and said, “THIRD CIVIL JUDGE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE”
There was no mention of the request by Sunset to not have anything to do with paying taxes.
“This signed sheet corresponds to the Collaboration Agreement to develop a Mediation Program, by the Court Superior Court of Justice and the Judicial Council, both of Mexico City, for those affected.”
==========
NOTE that I have googled CAT and the name of the judge. Both bring up court documents signed by them, and pictures of them. These all seem legit, but are they just posing as these valid people? I got no results when searching for the Sunset rep’s name.
==========
On July 1, CAT called to say that the banks had tried to contact us. I told her it’s a Canadian holiday and we were away.
We talked a bit.
I was amazed to find that after all of this, we would still have our contracts with Sunset. We still would have access to our Sunset timeshare. We would NOT have to pay any more maintenance fees, and we would NOT be able to sell our contracts.
This all sounds weird. I want to get rid of the contracts. I don’t want to have anything more to do with Sunset.
I begin to wonder whether someone out there has or is gathering info so that they can have access to our contracts and use them in our place. If that’s the case then it would make sense that they don’t want us to sell or terminate the contracts.
I’ve asked CAT about getting documents to prove we don’t have to pay any more maintenance fees and was told that all such documents will be provided later (seemingly after we get involved with the bank).
==========
On July 2 I got a call from a manager at the Bank of Mexico
He asked for our case number (which I was able to find).
He told me the $USD amount that was awarded to us on June 27, 2024.
He says that the USD must be converted to pesos (17 pesos per USD) because only companies can have USD accounts.
He said that the money must be put into a CUSTODIAN ACCOUNT (not a regular account...is just for holding money for transfer...no interest).
The award amount surpasses limits, so it requires insurance of some kind.
He said that there will be taxes of some kind applied, but that they cannot be paid out of the funds in the account. THIS IS WHAT TRIGGERED ME. THIS IS WHAT WE HAVE BEEN EXPECTING TO HEAR BECAUSE THIS IS WHERE OTHERS HAVE BEEN SCAMMED OUT OF MONEY AND HAVE NEVER ENDED UP RECEIVING THE ORIGINAL MONEY THEY WERE PROMISED EITHER.
I asked if there would be signed documentation explaining all of this. He essentially said, "not right now" and seemed reluctant to go into it.
He said that the next step was to make a decision about how to transfer the money. He's sending a document to be filled out for that.
==========
On July 2, I received an email from Banxico MX (worldbanking@banxico.solutions) asking me to fill out an “Application for Foreigner Account Activation”
I didn’t fill it out. Wanted to do some research first.
LEGAL ADDRESS OF THE BANK OF MEXICO
Avenida 5 de Mayo 2, Colonia Centro, Código postal 06000, Alcaldía Cuauhtémoc, Ciudad de México, México
{{{ NOTE that the "Manager" has a slightly different address.
Av. 5 de Mayo, No. 2, Col. Centro. C.P. 06059 Del. Cuauhtémoc, Ciudad de México, CDMX.
Though it is very similar.
}}}
EMAIL ADDRESS
Manager's address ends in "@banxico.solutions" rather than "banxico.org.mx"?
On the Banco de Mexico official site (banxico.org.mx) I found a document called [Warning: Fraudulent communications and false Internet domains].
"Banco de México does not engage in financial transactions with the general public."
"Does not participate in any program related with compensation payments or reimbursements to third parties or others of a similar nature."
"Does not participate in, or has any relationship with, any type of operation associated with timeshare schemes offered or marketed by various companies."
==========
On July 3, CAT called to check into whether we’d given the bank our info, and asked “Why not? Do you have questions?”
I mentioned that the Mexican bank states it does not deal with individuals or with timeshares. She said that that is true, but this is a court issue. She said that the bank guy would not be friendly in answering questions because that is not part of his job. She said that if we didn't create a custodial account then our only option would be to use a certified cheque. That would not, however, get rid of the need to pay taxes. A custodial account is only meant to exist for a maximum of 15 days. It's there to get the job done.
CAT let slip out a mention of 16% at one point, which I took to be what the taxes would amount to. That's would be a huge amount (over $15000USD). I told her that we could not afford to pay that. She just said that it's her job to make sure it happens and that we get the help we need. Implied that the government would be approached to take some action to help.
CAT said a few times that she's our government representative down there since we have not chosen to show up. We could show up and that would make her job easier and easier for us to confirm all that's going on down there. That statement doesn't help though. How easy is it to go and be there?
==========
On July 3, my wife and I went to our bank here in Canada to ask about the Bank of Mexico and the custodian/foreigner account. We showed her the application. She seemed very skeptical. She said that "there was no such thing" as a temporary account like this. She said that it looked like they were activating an account on our behalf. Implied that it was questionable. Sounds like she would not do it herself.
She suggested that we try to authenticate the court document (find out the courthouse location and verify that they'd had this deposition).
She also suggested talking to the Mexican Embassy.
I did try to figure out how to access the Mexican Embassy in Toronto, but just got confused.
Signed up for TUG, and am now trying to submit a request for help/advice.
==========
Note that I’ve been reluctant to specify names of people, in case it would complicate things for us legally. I want to protect the innocent if this is a valid case.
As things are, I’m inclined to just stop this whole series of events in their tracks and take it no further. If it’s legit, then that would be a shame, but if it’s not, then the repercussions would be way worse.
==========
SOME CONCERNS THAT I’VE IDENTIFIED:
- If this is a government agency, then would it not have email domains ending in “gob.mx”? For example, a legitimate UIF (financial crimes investigation unit in Mexico called UIF) email address would be UIF.gob.mx." Googling led me to what seems to be a valid email address for "Internal Affairs Unit" (unideasuntosinternos@fgjcdmx.gob.mx).
- Why such a large “award” amount for me. My contact info was apparently made public, but it seems like everyone can access this info. Sunset’s always warning clients to be on the alert for scam callers. The award, even if legitimate, seems too large. More than the amount we had paid for our contracts with Sunset.
- Is there a way of confirming that the court session was a real court session held in the facilities of the Supreme Court?
- Is there a way of confirming that the case number (GOB-1427/08R) is a real case number and refers to the court session described above in the Supreme Court facilities?
- If this is a scam, then it is certainly a very complicated one, well prepared for (especially the courtroom drama). Would scammers go to that extreme?
- Any time I try to ask about the taxes, I don’t get an answer.
- Until the emails from the bank started coming, I was not required to sign anything, not even any court documents.
- Is this a valid email (worldbanking@banxico.solutions) for the Bank of Mexico? I was expecting to see it end in something like "banxico.org.mx".
- We apparently won’t have to pay any more Sunset maintenance fees but will still be able to use our Sunset timeshare. We just won’t be able to sell it. We want to see this all in writing. Why can’t we sell our contracts?
- If they have enough info, could someone open a custodial/foreigner account in our name, but include themselves as people who have access to the account (to take out funds)?