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FBI agents bust telemarketing scheme aimed at small businesses

FBI agents arrested three Las Vegas men Thursday in a telemarketing scheme said to have defrauded small businesses of more than $3.5 million.

Jason Demko, 38, Michael Jones, 35, and Michael Guariglia, 47, all pleaded not guilty to conspiracy and wire fraud charges contained in a federal grand jury indictment.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Cam Ferenbach ordered their release on no bail with several restrictions, including pretrial supervision and travel limits. An Aug. 24 trial date was set.

The indictment alleges that between December 2010 and the spring of 2013, Demko and his co-defendants solicited fees from small business owners through false promises to help them obtain federal grant money in return for a fee.

The defendants operated under the names Summit Business Consultants, Inner Circle Corp., Sierra Investment Group and Valley Business Development, according to the indictment.

Demko and company changed business names and locations to avoid law enforcement, the indictment alleges.

“Advance fee fraud schemes are common and perpetrated for the sole purpose of enriching the fraudsters,” Nevada U.S. Attorney Daniel Bogden said. “We are currently prosecuting a number of these cases in which the defendants prey on unsuspecting business owners who are seeking grants for their businesses.”

Laura Bucheit, special agent in charge of the Las Vegas FBI, added: “These indictments highlight the FBI’s unrelenting commitment to investigate financial crimes and serve as a reminder for consumers to be vigilant and protect themselves.”

This is not the first time Demko has run afoul of the law. In January he was indicted along with his mother and two other people in a similar telemarketing scheme aimed at small business owners. The indictment alleged that between January 2013 and February 2014 the defendants operated out of Foundation Processing Center, a telemarketing company.

Federal prosecutors want to recover more than $307,000 from the defendants in that case, which is set for trial Sept. 14.

In recent years, the FBI has been cracking down on telemarketing companies that defraud struggling small businesses with phony promises of help to obtain federal funding.

In December, seven people were indicted in another boiler room operation said to have collected $26 million from 3,500 victims nationwide. Among those charged in the 38-count indictment were the alleged leaders, Mark Bausch, 40, and Alan Rodrigues, 55, who was convicted here last year in a massive nationwide tax scheme that cost the government hundreds of millions of dollars.

The telemarketing indictment alleged the seven defendants carried out the scheme to defraud the small businesses from 2007 to 2010 through four telemarketing companies — Small Business Funding Co., Company Funds Inc., Foundation Research Inc. and Silver State Holding Co.

Contact Jeff German at jgerman@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-8135. Follow @JGermanRJ on Twitter.

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