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Office of Attorney General PATRICIA A. MADRID |
FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE March
17, 2005 Contact:
Sam Thompson (505) 222-9174 |
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PRESS RELEASE |
AG Madrid Warns New Mexicans
About
Two Vending Machine
Companies
(Santa Fe, NM)—Attorney General Patricia Madrid today warned New Mexicans about the “business opportunity” practices of two New Mexico-based vending machine sales companies: Success Vending Group and National Vending Consultants. Both companies have Albuquerque addresses and have been linked to Socorro residents Patrick Abeyta, Jr. and Debra Abeyta.
Attorney General Madrid said, “My Consumer Protection Division has received complaints from consumers around the nation about these vending machine companies. We have also been notified that the Federal Trade Commission has filed a lawsuit against these companies. To date, we have received 28 complaints from out-of-state consumers claiming losses of more than $300,000.”
“Consumers should be extremely cautious before considering investing in any so-called ‘business opportunity.’ When considering any investment, you should do significant research into the company offering a profit-making opportunity. Don’t simply take the company’s claims at their word; check with other firms, other previous investors and the Better Business Bureau to see what they have to say about the company’s history. Companies offering these so-called ‘business opportunities’ are required to provide a list of prior investors and their contact information,” said Madrid. “Too often a great business opportunity is only an opportunity to lose money.”
All
of the complaints filed in New Mexico allege that money was paid to Success
Vending Group or National Vending Consultants for the vending machines,
including shipping costs, and locating costs.
In all but two cases, no vending machines were ever provided to the
complainants, and neither Success Vending Group nor National Vending
Consultants have issued any refunds.
The Attorney General’s office opened an inquiry following numerous
complaints from around the country and a lawsuit filed in the Nevada U.S.
District Court by the Federal Trade Commission. On February 8th, the court ordered the Defendants to
stop operating their businesses, froze their accounts and business assets, and
appointed a Las Vegas, Nevada attorney as receiver.
Both the Attorney General’s Office and the FTC had taken action against the Abeytas and their business practices in the past. In February of 2000, the New Mexico Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division entered an Assurance of Discontinuance (“AOD”) with Patrick Abeyta and his “Emergency Information Center, Inc.” for a medical information card business opportunity scam. Abeyta paid $12,500 in restitution and $2,500 in civil penalties and agreed to cease his business practices through Emergency Information Center, Inc. An AOD is an agreement that stops the practice the Attorney General’s Office finds to be egregious. If the company violates the AOD further, the Attorney General’s Office will take legal action. The current FTC action, consumer complaints and the Attorney General’s inquiry into the companies’ business practices are unrelated to this previous AOD with National Vending Consultants.
In April of 2001, the Abeytas also settled a lawsuit with the FTC over charges that they failed to provide the required pre-sale disclosures to prospective purchasers of their snack and soda vending machine business opportunity. The lawsuit was part of a nationwide crackdown on fraudulent business opportunities.
Consumers injured by Success Vending Group or National Vending Consultants should contact the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division in Santa Fe at (505) 827-6009 or call toll-free, 1-800-678-1508. Consumer complaint forms are available on the Attorney General’s website at www.ago.state.nm.us.
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