Sometime between March 14-21 (I can't remember the actual date) My husband received a call at 9pm after getting off work from someone names KEVIN WATSON from the ENTITLEMENT PRO GRANT CENTER.
They told him we could receive $5000 in Federal Grants from the Government Treasury. My husband was suspicious at first, but after checking the website, he couldn't find anything on the company. So he gave our banking account information and routing number and all of that (I was already suspicious but he insisted I trust him, money was going into our account not taken out)
Then later on March 25 at 6:47pm I receive a call from the same company asking to speak to me now. Asking for the same information as before, giving me the same spill about how we can receive $5000 in Federal Grants, the only condition is that I'm 18 and I will not use the money for any illegal actions.
Now, at that point I was transferred from the initial telemarketer GARY to another person named TOM QUINN. I confronted them saying they've already contacted us once before and spoke to my husband, but they insisted on getting our account information again because of the Data Corrections Act (as they said) all of their customers personal information MUST be deleted out of their system within 24 Hours of the initial contact.
Foolish enough, I was transferred to their Verification Officer, CHAROLETTE JOHNSON and gave her our information again. I started to give the information again to a recorded automated system when the call was cut off by Charlotte who said she was just notified that the information was received once before and that the informational package to complete the transaction was already sent.
They package was supposed to include:
-A CD-ROM with information on how to obtain more Federal grants
-a form which is to be sent back to them confirming the information within 7-10 business days.
At that time she tells me since this is a bank-to-bank transfer of monies they need to charge a fee of $249.95 and we have 10 days to confirm or deny the charge. I asked her, will they ever take out funds from our account automatically without out authorization. She stated NO because they have no record of our information since she had just deleted it from their system as we spoke. My husband was not informed of this charge when they had spoken to him. If they did, he would have said a straight no.
March 30- I just find out from my husband that a $249.95 debit charge was taken out of our account the night before. Only 4 Days (3 Business Days) After notifying us of the bank-to-bank transfer fee. Of course I was extremely upset (since I was suspicious from the beginning) and I had to call the bank to file a Transaction dispute. An investigation is now pending from the banks branch of Fraud Services.
After calling my bank I recall the Entitlement Pro Grant Center Customer Service line (I has called them first but received an answering machine) I spoke to a SAM PETERSON who informed me that out account was debited the $249.95 and that was NOT for the bank-to-bank transfer fee but is the cost of the package that we were supposed to be received already. They said their telemarketers where wrong in the information they had given to us. On my opinion, EXTREEMLY wrong on all angels, never mentioning the fee the first time speaking to us. Not Correctly naming the fee the second time, and Charging us before the 10 period on contact to approve or decline.
Now, they said they cancelled the package and are going to refund us within 15-18 business days. Only time will tell whether or not they give us our money back (Which is something we need to keep food on my children's table). But I will still keep the banks investigation of this matter open just incase they don't give us our money back and keep beating around the bush' to try and wait out they bank.
Just as a warning to anyone, be cautious. There was no record of this company anywhere, so I'm going to make it now on this site. I'm not saying they're total frauds, but their actions keep me suspicious of they motives. NEVER give out personal information over then phone. Learning it the hard way several times is not good. I'll post again if any changes are made whether we get the money back or not.
And on a side note, everyone I spoke to had an intense foreign accent (not to single anyone on out but) they sounded middle-eastern, Indian or something And I have never met a telemarketer who so easily gave out their last names. If you look at them, with the intense accents the last names seem pretty generic.
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