More arrests today in orlando timeshare resale scam office raid!

[TUGBrian]

http://www.wftv.com/news/26716327/detail.html

Investigators said people from Time Share Express would call the owner of the timeshare and say they have a buyer, but need money sent to them. The owner would then send money to a bank and the buyer would disappear.

Officers said when they busted in the upscale Metrowest third-story office, people were throwing marijuana and paperwork over the balcony. Investigators said as many as 20 people may be involved, but detained 11.

 

[JeffBrown]

witness

I just spoke with a vendor that just happened to be at that office building when the 40 plus SWAT team with 2 armored transports busted down the door for their surprise raid.

Said it was hilarious watching them run around to pick up all the paperwork, etc that was thrown out.

 

[rickandcindy23]

Wow, this was unexpected and very appreciated. I emailed the Fl AG:

Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi received your email regarding
telemarketing calls by a timeshare resale company, International Timeshare
Network. Attorney General Bondi asked that I respond. I am sorry for
your difficulties.

The Attorney General's Office has made timeshare resales one of our top
consumer priorities, and we are actively investigating multiple businesses
pursuant to Florida’s Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act, Chapter
501, Part II, Florida Statutes. We use complaints such as yours to
identify patterns of questionable business activity which may indicate the
need for formal investigation or action by our office to protect the broad
public interest. I am retaining your correspondence in our consumer files
for future reference.

Additionally, I invite you to visit the Attorney General's comprehensive
website about the timeshare resales industry in Florida. This website
provides information on the Attorney General's investigations of
particular businesses, along with the consumer tips about resolving
timeshare resale issues. Also as it appears you may have previously lost
money to a timeshare resale company, you may file a complaint on our
website at:

http://www.myfloridalegal.com/timeshares

The Attorney General and Federal Trade Commission have also issued
important consumer alerts about so-called "recovery rooms," and
"reloading," scams which target consumers who previously fell prey to
telemarketing and other schemes:

http://myfloridalegal.com/pages.nsf/main/c6bb5f8d20910af785256cc9005e72d3!OpenDocument


http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/telemarketing/tel10.shtm

I also encourage you to file a complaint with the Florida Department of
Agriculture and Consumer Services, Division of Consumer Services (DACS).
The DACS registers non-exempt telemarketers and administers provisions of
the Florida Telephone Solicitation Act which includes the State's No Sales
Solicitation List. For further information about telemarketing, please
visit DACS's website:

http://www.800helpfla.com/telemkt.html

You may file your complaint directly with DACS at:

Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
Division of Consumer Services
2005 Apalachee Parkway
Tallahassee, Florida 32399
Telephone: (850) 488-2221
Toll-free within FL: (800) 435-7352
Website:
http://csapp.800helpfla.com/CSPublicApp/Complaints/FileComplaint.aspx

Since your phone number is listed on the federally sponsored national "Do
Not Call" registry, you may file a complaint about violations, by calling
(888) 382-1222. More information is available on the Federal Trade
Commission's website at:

https://www.donotcall.gov/

Finally, consumers should never provide personal information such as bank
account numbers, social security numbers, credit card account information,
or birth dates, at the request of unsolicited emails, text messages, or
phone calls. Please do not respond to these types of requests. I
encourage you to review the following information regarding telemarketing
and reloading practices:

http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/microsites/phonefraud/recognize.shtml < FTC's
info on telephone fraud
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/microsites/phonefraud/reloading.shtml < FTC's
info on reloading
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/microsites/phonefraud/robocalls.shtml < FTC's
info on robocalls
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/microsites/phonefraud/ < FTC's info on
telemarketing phone fraud
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/microsites/phonefraud/report.shtml < FTC's
info how to report phone fraud

Thank you for contacting Attorney General Bondi's Office. I hope this
proves helpful.

Sincerely,
Sarah Layton
Office of Citizen Services
Florida Attorney General's Office
PL-01, The Capitol
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1050
Telephone: (850) 414-3990
Toll-free in Florida: (866) 966-7226
Website: http://www.myfloridalegal.com

PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TO THIS E-MAIL. THIS ADDRESS IS FOR PROCESSING ONLY.

To contact this office please visit the Attorney General's website at
www.myfloridalegal.com and complete the on-line contact form. Again,
thank you for contacting the Office of the Florida Attorney General.
________________________________________________________________________


INTERNET MESSAGE RECEIVED BY THE ATTORNEY GENERAL'S OFFICE ON 01/17/2011

Cynthia XXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXX, CO XXXXX
Phone:
Email: XXXXX

RE: International Timeshare Network
Orlando, FL
Phone: (407) 219-9165

Subject: Timeshare scams/ phone calls/ upfront fee company

Got another call from this company and am on the Do Not Call list, and
this
company is trying to steal money from unsuspecting timeshare owners. They
say
they are licensed, boneded, insured, etc., but they sure are not, and they
do
everything possible to convince you that they are the best company to rent
your
timeshare. It's a scam, pure and simple, and I would like to see this
company
closed down, before they hurt more innocent people.

 

[glypnirsgirl]

I am so glad to hear of these arrests. I hope that the idea of jail time will shut these theives down!

elaine

 

[rwroth]

Timeshare Scam

Now how about the guys that offer a free dinner & a 5 day/4 night vacation certificate if you call their number 800-268-0362, based on a recent timeshare exchange. And seats are limited !! I saw a reference to a TUGer (by reverse searching the phone number) that called this number, but I haven't been able to locate his thread. Any help?

 

[morgane22]

International Timeshare Network

When I searched google, it was to find info on ITN...not these other companies. Why is it leading me to other company names if thats not what I looked up. ? Either way...i ended up researching more info on International Timeshare network..and they are licensed and insured through the state, unlike these other companies that these forums are about. There is a lot of fraud out there, but I ended up going with them 4 months ago for the rental. Not the sale of my timeshare. I have received 3 offers...and accepted 2. So i do know they can at least do the rentals. I recommend them, i got a little antsy at first, but they assured me, and they pulled through.

-Satisfied consumer

 

[rickandcindy23]

Do not believe the previous poster. A one-time post from a person who claims to have success with some anonymous website? Not to be taken seriously. :rofl:

 

[rrlongwell]

It does appear the Flordia Attorney General et. al. are taking a real shot at cleaning up the Florida re-sale market.

 

[LannyPC]

It does appear the Flordia Attorney General et. al. are taking a real shot at cleaning up the Florida re-sale market.

Unfortunately, it does nothing (or at least very little) to stop these scammers from operating out of the other 49 states, Mexico, or any other country.