HARRISBURG – The Attorney General’s Bureau of Consumer Protection has filed a civil lawsuit against a Massachusetts man accused of operating a deceptive and misleading “unclaimed money” search service and website.
Attorney General Tom Corbett said the consumer protection lawsuit was filed against Areg A. Sakanyan, of Waltham, Massachusetts, doing business as unclaimedmoney.us.com, Unclaimed Money Database, Unclaimed Money and the Modeling Group.
According to the lawsuit, Sakanyan’s website advertises a free search that consumers can supposedly use to determine if unclaimed money, property or other assets are listed in their name – offering a “National Unclaimed Money Database with Instant Online Unclaimed Assets Lookup,” and urging consumers to “locate the money that belongs to you!”
Corbett said that the free initial search only provides vague information, often indicating that unclaimed assets may be available for any name that is entered. Following the free search, consumers are instructed to purchase a “membership” for $24.95 which will grant them access to more details about the unclaimed assets, along with claims information.
“The attraction of valuable ‘unclaimed assets’ and the offer of a free search are simply lures to convince consumers to send their money to Mr. Sakanyan and his businesses,” Corbett said. “Even searches for Batman, Spiderman and Wily E. Coyote indicate that there are many sources of unclaimed money awaiting those fictitious characters – though details about those unclaimed assets quickly disappeared once the $24.95 ‘membership’ has been purchased.”
Corbett noted that undercover investigators from the Attorney General’s Bureau of Consumer Protection conducted numerous searches on the www.unclaimedmoney.us.com website, using multiple names for cartoon characters and other fictitious names. In every case, the free website search indicated there were multiple sources for unclaimed money for each of the fictitious names.
According to the lawsuit, a website ‘membership’ was purchased in order to obtain more details about those unclaimed assets. The more detailed search of the unclaimed money database quickly indicated that no results were available, and instructed agents to wait for the results of a ‘manual search’ to be sent by mail – results which did not arrive as promised.
Corbett said the unclaimed money website also uses symbols and language that appear to indicate that the site is sponsored by government agencies – including a capitol dome and seal, along with a declaration that the website is an “official source” for information. In actuality, the “unclaimed money” website is a private business, with no affiliation or relationship to any government agency.
Corbett said the front page of Sakanyan’s website advertises instant searches for a variety of government-held and private assets, including Holocaust Victims Settlement Funds; HUD Refunds and Lost Bank Accounts; Veteran Benefits & IRS Refunds; Railroad Retirement & Credit Union Accounts; Missing Bonds & Lost Safety Deposit Boxes; Government Pensions & Life Insurances; Social Security Benefits and Postal Money Orders; Missing Inheritances and Abandoned Properties; Unclaimed Stocks and Unclaimed Jewelry; Postal Savings Bonds and Nationwide Unclaimed Properties.
Additionally, Corbett said that that Sakanyan and his businesses fail to adequately disclose to consumers that all of the information available from their “unclaimed money” database and website is based on publicly available sources – information that would generally be available free-of-charge. In fact, after purchasing the $24.95 membership, the unclaimed property website provided undercover agents with a list of links to free search sites and suggested that the agents conduct their own search.
According to the lawsuit, Sakanyan and his businesses are accused of:
Deceiving consumers about an affiliation with government agencies.
Failure to deliver goods and services as promised.
Failure to adequately disclose material terms.
Violations of the Mail Order Rule.
Failing to register a fictitious business name.
The Attorney General’s lawsuit seeks full restitution for all affected Pennsylvania residents who purchased memberships to the www.unclaimedmoney.us.com website; with civil penalties of $1,000 per violation ($3,000 for each violation involving a senior citizen) and a permanent ban on any violations of the Consumer Protection Law or other Pennsylvania laws.
Consumers with questions or concerns about this case, or other consumer problems, can contact the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection toll-free hotline at 1-800-441-2555 or file an online complaint using the Attorney General’s Web site.
Corbett urged any consumer curious about unclaimed property to use various free search programs. The Pennsylvania Treasury Department has a free online search for unclaimed property here. (Click on the “Claim what is yours” link on the front page of the Treasury Department Web site)
Corbett added that many other states also operate free official unclaimed property searches. Consumers can visit here, a cooperative website project involving many states, to search for unclaimed property located outside Pennsylvania.