LAWSUITS NEWS & LEGAL INFORMATION
Thomas Richardson
Florence, AL: (Jun-04-07) The Federal Trade Commission filed charges against Thomas Richardson, the man behind Mid-South Distributors, alleging that he advertised his greeting card display rack business opportunities in classified ads in local newspapers, claiming falsely that purchasers could earn as much as $65,000 a year. The FTC filed the case as part of Project FAL$E HOPE$, a nationwide crackdown in December 2006 on bogus business opportunities by federal, state, and local authorities. Based in Florence, Alabama, Richardson sold distributorships in Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, Mississippi, Florida, and Kentucky, Richardson promised potential purchasers that for an investment of $8,500 or more, they would receive everything they needed to start a business: an initial inventory of greeting cards, display racks for the cards, and profitable locations where he would supposedly place the cards and racks for the purchaser.
The FTC lawsuit claimed that the consumers never earned anything close to the income levels they were promised. The Commission alleged that in almost every case, consumers made less than $100 per month. The highest earning purchaser only returned $2,006 for the entire year by investing in 20 locations. In addition, Richardson often did not provide his customers with the promised number of locations for their display racks.
In a settlement reached, the court prohibited Richardson from making future false claims in connection with the sale of any business venture. The order also enters a monetary judgment of $901,402.89, the total amount of money consumers paid, minus any refunds that were given. The judgment is suspended based on sworn financial disclosures. However, if it is found the defendant lied in those financial statements, then the full amount will be due. [CONTACTO: ADVERTISING FRAUD]
Published on Jun-5-07
The FTC lawsuit claimed that the consumers never earned anything close to the income levels they were promised. The Commission alleged that in almost every case, consumers made less than $100 per month. The highest earning purchaser only returned $2,006 for the entire year by investing in 20 locations. In addition, Richardson often did not provide his customers with the promised number of locations for their display racks.
In a settlement reached, the court prohibited Richardson from making future false claims in connection with the sale of any business venture. The order also enters a monetary judgment of $901,402.89, the total amount of money consumers paid, minus any refunds that were given. The judgment is suspended based on sworn financial disclosures. However, if it is found the defendant lied in those financial statements, then the full amount will be due. [CONTACTO: ADVERTISING FRAUD]
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