©2006 The Chestnut Hill Local

Solicitors lying to residents, but company may be legit
by KRISTIN PAZULSKI

The suspected scam touring the streets of Chestnut Hill and Springfield Township may be a legitimate solicitation, according to the records of the Better Business Bureau. The Northwest Detectives Division advise residents to call 911 right away if they suspect a scam in their neighborhood.

In the past few weeks, numerous residents have contacted the Local about young men, who appear to be from 18 to 24, claiming to be college students soliciting for magazines door-to-door, raising money for a trip to London for educational purposes.

Residents who wrote checks for the young men wrote them out to “WWC.” Some of the solicitors told residents that part of the proceeds would go to a charity, such as the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, as well as toward their trip. A receipt given to one woman, who paid $38 for a magazine subscription, listed World Wide Circulation Inc., as the business contracted by Precision Sales — the apparent sales company sending the solicitors on the street.

Liz Brisendine, the supervisor of customer service in St. Clair Shores, Mich., described WWC as a clearing house that processes magazine and book orders through other companies. She confirmed that Precision Sales was one of the companies contracting with WWC.

Another WWC representative said that often sales companies, such as Precision Sales, will sell door-to-door to earn points to win a trip to Paris, London or Acapulco. She added that if residents did not want the magazines or books, they could be sent to a local charity, such as CHOP.

CHOP spokeswoman Dana Mortenson could not verify whether the fundraiser was legitimate. She said that sometimes organizations raise money for the hospital, and that CHOP is unaware of it until the check is turned in. She couldn’t find a record of deliveries from WWC or Precision Sales, but said that didn’t mean CHOP wouldn’t receive them.

The BBB of Detroit and Eastern Michigan lists WWC as “a clearing house, whose purpose is to process magazine orders and help customers with their magazine orders,” paralleling the description given by Brisendine. BBB’s Renell Gonsalves, of the inquiry department, said that the business began in 1984 under the name Teresa Brisendine, and that complaints filed against WWC are normal, unrelated to fraud, and have been resolved, except one dealing with a refund/exchange issue.

But no information on a Precision Sales working in the magazine industry has been found through Google or BBB searches. WWC was not able to provide contact information for the company, but Liz Brisendine said she could give a message to the company to contact the Local. She gave the name Randall Ayers as the person who would be contacting the Local from Precision Sales. At press time, the Local had received no such calls.

The stories the solicitors have told residents, though seemingly legitimate, have holes and lies in them that have led to the scamming suspicion. A few of the young men have told residents that a neighbor — and they use the neighbor’s name — directed them to their home. Later, residents would ask the neighbor and find the young men’s claim had been false.

Another woman was approached by two very different looking young men, who delivered the same story about their mother walking the family dogs, but with varying details, such as the dogs’ breed. The second boy responded to her questions with immediate, seemingly well-prepared answers, the woman said, and even before the second approach she doubted the story.

The Springfield Township Police Department is aware of the solicitations and said, as previously reported, that there have been no signs of fraud. But they said any young men caught going door-to-door have been cited for not having a permit.

Detectives said that they were unaware of the solicitations, but said it sounded like an organized effort. “When it’s an organized effort, it’s definitely something to be more concerned about,” Detective Roy Simmons said.

He advised residents to call 911 as soon as possible when a suspected scammer leaves the doorstep, so that the police can respond and catch the solicitor in the street. If police units are unable to respond immediately because of higher priority calls, the department is at least then aware of the issue and can return to it.

Simmons said that it is “always a possibility” that such solicitors are scouting the area for robbery/burglary options. “The people who commit those kind of crimes [scamming] are opportunists, and if the opportunity is open to them, they are going to take it,” he said.

Contact staff writer Kristin Pazulski at 215-248-8819 or kristin@ChestnutHillLocal.com.