Recently the Federal Trade Commission discovered a scheme that tricked many senior citizens in the United States. Impostors who claimed to be connected with Medicare took millions of dollars from Medicare consumers’ personal bank accounts without their permission.
The FTC announced that it will take steps to permanently put an end to this scheme and refund its victims.
According to victims of this scam and complaints filed by the FTC, the impostors contacted Medicare consumers and claimed they were providing information about Medicare benefits and new Medicare cards.
The impostors allegedly collected private information, including bank account numbers, and assured consumers that there was no charge for the new Medicare card or benefits.
Consumers discovered within a few weeks that their bank accounts were debited amounts of either $399 or $448 with the use of remotely created checks. The impostors never rendered any services or provided any products.
The FTC charged the defendants with violating the FTC Act and the FTC’s Telemarketing Sales Rule. The defendants are Sun Bright Ventures L.L.C., Citadel ID Pro L.L.C., and Benjamin Todd Workman. The FTC named Trident Consulting Partners L.L.C. and Glenn Erickson as relief defendants who made money from the scheme. Last month, the court entered a temporary restraining order to put an end to the defendants’ deceptive scheme and to freeze their assets.