Adrian Abramovich has distinguished himself in infamy, which a record FCC fine of $120 million for his key role in making nearly 100 million robocalls between 2015 and 2016. Last week, the FCC fine handed down in June, was finalized.
The robocalls offered fraudulent discounted travel services to Mexico, the Caribbean and Florida. They falsely claimed to be from Expedia (EXPE), Marriott (MAR), Hilton (HLT) and TripAdviser (TRIP). In other words, a colossal dirtbag. According to the FCC, Abramovich is , under the business name “Marketing Strategy Leaders,” had not only impersonated real travel companies in his robocalls but had also allegedly interrupted the network of Spōk, a Virginia-based paging provider used by first responders for critical hospital alerts.
What is bizarre is that, despite declared Abramovich the “Kingpin” of illegal robocalls, he Appears uncharged with a crime. If these calls were fraudulent, that seems a conspicuous omission given the extent of his disgraceful business.
The truth is that ‘X’ Number of so-called ‘businessmen’ are really (choose your term): A) Buccaneers. B) Predators. C) Scammers.
Therefore when Republicans talk about “getting government off the backs of business”, they are often encouraging the least scrupulous businessmen.
This past weekend The New York Times ran a story detailing how Education Secretary Betsy DeVos is cutting short her department’s effort to investigate predatory For-Profit Colleges. Said effort began under Obama and was making significant headway in rooting out predators. But DeVos has clearly indicated that said investigations are no longer priority.
Coincidently DeVos has hired several former executives of the For-Profit College industry. One could argue she is turning her department over to forces sympathetic to For-Profits. Coincidently Donald Trump ran a For-Profit College that was ordered to settle-out of court, for $25, million, with former, disgruntled students who felt Trump ‘U’ was a scam!
DeVos has also approved sweetheart deals for middlemen servicing student loans. Whereas Obama was taking the department in just the opposite direction. Why should middlemen profit from student loans..??
Similar shenanigans are currently afoot at the EPA and Department of Interior. Former industry executives are now the regulators rewriting rules at the behest of former employers. It’s the classic ‘swamp’ and deeper than ever under Trump.
This story is a perfect example of how this legal blog would turn into a ghost town without the political angle. Make this guy Trump allegedly calling the Russians and we’d have 120 posts by now.
This guy is never going to pay the fine. They should lock him in a cell and force him to answer a ringing phone 120 million times before he can get out.
Legal blog? JT turned his site political long ago. Your’e right about his political posts, and if he wrote something about HRC he would have 250 comments. And I agree with your statement about that, this guy will never pay up.
He will go to court and have it cut in half, or he will never pay it. Or he can say nice words to the dear leader and get a pardon.
The FCC rarely has an opportunity to impress the public since so much of their work is policy which we only see indirectly.
Here the FCC had an opportunity to impress us. They blew it.
What good are they?
That’s the question. WTF?
Here’s a nice App. Robocall killer….FTC approved.
These massive fines just provide more money for the government to p!ss away, and do nothing to help the consumers. That’s why the government is more interested in assessing fines than pursuing criminal charges.
Massive fines have huge upsides. The taxpayers get money instead of spending it on imprisonment, parole, etc. and a fine that large has to be a deterrent–make it larger if it isn’t. Just make sure it really gets paid.
and Kerry has still not been charged with working as an unregistered agent for a foreign government. There is no requirement to be paid.
Hillary for Pay for Play and now the left is trying to accuse others of their own misdeeds
Meuller for investigating the crime of collusion which is not a crime
Crime is rampant but it looks like this robo king is a piker compared to those not being charged. Hmmmm think i’s polticial?