U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned eight Mexican companies linked to timeshare fraud on behalf of the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion (CJNG). CJNG is a violent Mexico-based organization that traffics a significant proportion of the illicit fentanyl and other deadly drugs that enter the United States. Today’s action is the result of a collaboration between the United States and the Government of Mexico.

“As CJNG has consolidated territory over the past decade, it has added other crimes to its core activity of drug trafficking,” said OFAC Director Andrea M. Gacki. “In tourist destinations such as Puerto Vallarta, CJNG has become heavily engaged in timeshare fraud, which often targets U.S. citizens"...

Although there are different types of timeshare fraud, the schemes often involve the following: (1) third-party scammers, who claim to have ready buyers, make unsolicited purchase offers to timeshare owners; (2) if offers are accepted, scammers make requests of timeshare owners for payments of advance fees and taxes, supposedly to facilitate or expedite the sale with assurances of reimbursement upon closing; and (3) once multiple payments have been made to the scammers, timeshare owners eventually realize that the offers were fictitious, that there are no buyers, and that their money is gone.

The eight companies designated today, which are linked directly or indirectly to CJNG’s timeshare fraud activities, claim to be financial services or real estate companies. Five of the companies—Servicios Administrativos Fordtwoo, S.A. de C.V., Integracion Badeva, S.A. de C.V., JM Providers Office, S.A. de C.V., Promotora Vallarta One, S.A. de C.V., and Recservi, S.A. de C.V.—are based in or near Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico. Servicios Administrativos Fordtwoo, S.A. de C.V. has also made direct payments to CJNG members.... The remaining companies designated today—Corporativo Title I, S.A. de C.V., Corporativo TS Business Inc, S.A. de C.V., and TS Business Corporativo, S.A. de C.V.—are based in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico.

This is a little bit of old news, issued on a press release back in August- but I thought it was a worth revisiting as it shows how the telemarketing operators out of Mexico use multiple fake business names and websites to cold call timeshare owners across the Americas with fake purchase offers for timeshares located inside Mexico.  These con artists purchase black market owner lists, often from resort employees, which they then use to contact timeshare owners. The telemarketing pitch always involves a high sale price for a Mexican timeshare ownership, and a fake closing company to process the transfer. There are then fake closing fees, fake government taxes, etc that are extorted from the timeshare owner- always with the promise that after wiring money to a Mexican bank the seller's proceeds will be released. Of course, it always turns our that the buyer is a fake- the closing agent is a fake, and somehow the Mexican bank never seems to be able to return the money that was stolen.  As always, the BEST way to protect yourself from the Mexican timeshare scam- is simply to HANG UP on any telemarketing calls you get about your timeshare!   Follows is an excerpt from the release:

"....NEW ORLEANS –JESUS ADRIAN LEDESMA BERNAL, a/k/a JSS, age 32, a resident and citizen of Mexico, was sentenced today to 18 months in the Bureau of Prisons after pleading guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud by U.S. District Court Judge Jane Triche Milazzo of the Eastern District of Louisiana, announced U.S. Attorney Peter G. Strasser.
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As detailed in the factual basis and superseding bill of information, the defendants, from at least January 1, 2016, to the present, conspired together and with others to commit wire fraud in connection with a telemarketing scheme that targeted and victimized persons in the United States, Canada and South America. As part of the elaborate scheme, the conspirators made unsolicited phone calls to owners of resort timeshare properties to induce them into paying fees associated with the bogus sale of their property. The defendants misrepresented the existence of a buyer for their timeshare and solicited money from the victims to facilitate the sale. They solicited the timeshare owners to enter into agreements to sell their timeshares and pay for alleged “closing costs” with electronic wire transfers from banking institutions within the United States to Mexican banks. There were no interested buyers, the closings did not occur, and the timeshares were not resold. Instead, the conspirators simply pocketed the advanced fees. Of the U.S. victims, 40 were age 60 and older and the total estimated loss is at least $10,000,000.

The defendants, who are all based in Mexico, operated under the business names Planet Travel and Newport International Investments, and at other times used the following business names: Advance Travel INC, All American Real Estate, American International Investment Group, Bear Claw Travel, Best Investment Services, Champion Properties, Closing Source LLC, Equity Closing Services Group, Global Offshore Services, NSC Holding, Peach Title, Sandia Title, Travel and Acquisitions, Travel Innovations, Travel Plus Acquisitions, Travel Right, and World Travelers, Inc. All of these domain websites have been seized by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Justice.

BERNAL, who worked as a telemarketer, was ordered to pay restitution of $127,000 USD, a fee of $100.00, and he is subject to deportation after serving 18 months....."

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A reader has submitted what he believes is another version of the Mexican timeshare resale scam, this time being allegedly perpetrated by a company or individuals using the name "Property Solutions International". 

"...I'm not sure at this time if there is a scam but have been contacted (without cause) by a Perrie Walker with Property Solutions International 410 South Spring, Suite 310, Los Angeles, CA 90013 requesting to purchase our time share in Mexico. There is no up front cost but they request the attached sales agreement signed (of course they say they already have a buyer) a copy of the front page of our original sales agreement and our contract number. When  we asked for PSI's broker license number we were told they would send it once  the paperwork was faxed to them..."

When I reviewed the paperwork it appears to have the earmarks of many of the current telemarketing scams targeting Mexican timeshare owners: a very high sales price and an unsolicited cold call. 

If you believe that you have been the victim of a telemarketing scam or any other type of timeshare fraud perpetrated by this company, please take the time to contact the California Attorney General.

Over the past few years there have been numerous cases where individuals have been fined and imprisoned for timeshare related fraud. However, identifying and reporting con artists who victimize timeshare owners is the first step.