Thomas Mitchell
Audio By Carbonatix
The building at the intersection of 17th and Larimer streets in downtown Denver is eight stories tall, big enough to house a dentist, coffee shop, parcel service and several other occupants.
But Nike, Dow Chemical, the University of Colorado and over 12,000 more businesses and institutions? That seems like a stretch.
According to six separate lawsuits filed by the Colorado Attorney General’s Office in Denver District Court, approximately 12,238 commercial entities are fraudulently registered at 1312 17th St. with the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office — some of them filed under names that are “similar to well-known commercial brands or public institutions,” including businesses posing as Estee Lauder, Nike International Limited and Dow Chemical Ltd, and organizations claiming to be Oxford University PhD Team (UK) Institute, Colorado Engineering University, University of Colorado and Denver Business College.
Most of the names are slightly different from those of the businesses or schools they appear to be imitating, and some of the registrants, like “Denver Business College,” aren’t based on any colleges that actually exist. The AG’s Office alleges that most, if not all, of these sham businesses operate romance scams, retail fraud, cryptocurrency fraud and other illegal schemes.
All 12,238 of these entities claim to be located at one of six virtual mailboxes at 1312 17th St., which is the address for PostNet, a printing, shipping and design business.
Those six virtual mailboxes at PostNet were operated by Anytime Mailbox and iPostal, two virtual mailbox companies. According to the AG’s Office, Anytime Mailbox and iPostal “did not consent to the use of the 17th address by the defendants,” and the digital PO boxes are ineligible for registered business agent addresses in Colorado.
Virtual mailboxes allow people to view, forward or dispose of their mail digitally, but they also provide an avenue for scammers to appear as legitimate businesses, according to law enforcement and even those within the industry — often unbeknownst to occupants of the addresses they claim. According to the AG’s lawsuit, these kind of fraudulent filings make it harder to identify who controls an entity and where the entity operates.
“Fraudulent business filings have long posed a significant problem in Colorado. Bad actors from around the world, largely operating out of China and Southeast Asia, have exploited Colorado’s business registry to create fraudulent entities on a massive scale, and have used those entities to perpetrate scams against consumers worldwide,” the six lawsuits all say.
The AG’s Office goes on to warn that these kind of fake business filings “are often the first step in broader fraudulent schemes,” enabling scammers to open bank accounts, obtain accreditations and even register with the U.S. Department of the Treasury or file with the Securities and Exchange Commission, all of which “further persuade unsuspecting consumers to provide money or financial information.”
It’s happening to Colorado homeowners, too
The AG’s Office has filed a separate lawsuit alleging that another 370 fraudulent businesses are using the residential address of a family in Cripple Creek. According to that lawsuit, filed in Teller County District Court the same day as the other six, one of the homeowners had registered the address for a small business he founded — only for the family to discover “their address seemingly having been picked out of the phonebook to use in filings with the Secretary of State.”
Another 53 Colorado homeowners have reached out to the AG’s Office with similar complaints, the lawsuit states.
“In addition to undermining the general integrity of Colorado’s corporate registry system, many Defendants have also engaged in schemes directly targeting consumers, including investment scams, cryptocurrency scams, retail scams, impostor scams and romance scams,” the AG’s Office says. In some cases, the fraudulent businesses were connected to scams involving dating apps, WhatsApp, and online cryptocurrency investment groups.
Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser announced the seven lawsuits and two more tied to alleged scammers in Colorado on May 21. According to his office, they were filed separately “due to technical constraints relating to the high number of defendants.” The AG is asking judges to dissolve the companies so that they can no longer operate in Colorado.
The proliferation of videos, audio and images produced by artificial intelligence has given scammers a new leg up on potential victims, the AG’s Office warns.
“Criminals can now imitate voices, create fake videos, write realistic emails, clone websites and impersonate trusted people with alarming accuracy.”
Find a few ways to help avoid scammers from the AG’s Office below:
- Be cautious of unsolicited investment opportunities, especially those promoted through social media, messaging apps, dating apps, or online contacts you have never met in person.
- Scammers often create urgency and pressure consumers to act quickly before they have time to think, research, or verify information.
- A business registration or certificate of good standing does not guarantee that a company is legitimate, reputable, or safe to send money to.
- Be wary of cryptocurrency transactions and Crypto ATMs. Scammers frequently direct consumers to move money through cryptocurrency platforms or Crypto ATMs because the transactions are difficult to reverse or trace.
- Research before sending money. Independently research businesses and investment opportunities before investing, and be skeptical of promises of unusually high returns with little or no risk.
If you believe you’ve been targeted or victimized by a scam, file a complaint and learn more at StopFraudColorado.gov.
