Attorney General's News Release

July 9, 1996

California telemarketer pleads guilty to fraud

Jefferson City, Mo. — A southern California man faces up to five years in prison after pleading guilty yesterday afternoon in Cole County Circuit Court to a charge of unlawful merchandising practices. The charge was brought by Attorney General Jay Nixon as part of a crackdown on fraudulent telemarketing calls into Missouri.

“Con men who dial into Missouri face tough prison sentences if they are convicted,” Nixon said. “We will continue to make this state unfriendly territory to fraudulent telemarketers.”

Lawrence Paul Behmer Jr., 23, of Sherman Oaks, Calif., admitted using a false name and telephoning into the state last fall to try to persuade an elderly Columbia woman to send him money. The intended victim's phone calls were forwarded to an undercover investigator with the Attorney General's Office, who tape-recorded the conversation.

Behmer and another man, Mathew Bertram Grob, were arrested in November by local authorities in California, who worked in cooperation with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Missouri Attorney General's Office. They then were extradited to Cole County to stand trial; Grob pled guilty to the criminal charge and was given a five-year prison sentence in May.

In pleading guilty, Behmer admitted that he and his company, All Star Products, fraudulently sought to obtain money by representing that the money would be used to pay fees connected with the woman's prize award. The woman was told that she had won one of four prizes, which included a $20,000 cashier's check and a new car. Behmer admitted that he did not intend to use the money for this purpose or to award a prize.

Behmer admitted that during the telephone conversation, he used a false name and gave a false address for his company; misrepresented the actual number of prize winners; and misrepresented that All Star Products did business with large retailers such as Wal-Mart, Kmart, Sears and J.C. Penney.

Behmer will be sentenced following a presentence investigation, which will be conducted by the Missouri Department of Probation and Parole. He faces a maximum penalty of five years imprisonment and a $5,000 fine.

Inquiries from consumers should be directed to consumer@ago.mo.gov or 1-800-392-8222 (from within Missouri) or 573-751-3321 (outside Missouri).

All media inquiries should be directed to Press Secretary John Fougere.

E-mail      Phone: 573-751-8844         Fax: 573-751-5818