Between Oct. 1 and Oct. 9, 65-year-old husband and 52-year-old wife, residents of Tilden Township, were contacted by Worldwide Resort Exchange, based out of Lake Mary, Florida. The victims owned a timeshare with another company. Worldwide Resort Exchange offered to help the victims rent their timeshare for profit.
The victims were told that they had to pay some upfront costs in order to get the process started. The victims wired around $3,200 as instructed. The victims were contacted a week later and told to wire around $7,000 for additional fees. The victims did as instructed. The wired money was sent to a bank in Charlotte, North Carolina.
When the victims were contacted a third time to send an additional $5,000, they refused to send more money. Worldwide Resort Exchange phone representatives attempted to intimidate and harass the victims to send more money. The victims then filed a police report.
An Internet search for Worldwide Resort Exchange will reveal multiple complaints for consumer fraud, as well as investigations by the Attorney General’s office in Florida.
Residents should thoroughly investigate any company they do business with. When in doubt, contact the Better Business Bureau, use the Internet for research or even ask an attorney to investigate.
This investigation is ongoing.