7035395978

The phone company itself may well have sold your number and mine to telemarketers to make extra money for themselves.  My own number is on the do not call list and is unlisted and still a lot of these crap calls come in.

Constantly call.... Irritating! Yes, this is the police and these folks won't take NO for an answer. And, by the way, CONTRIBUTIONS AREN'T TAX DEDUCTIBLE!!!

been getting this call for past three days. when I call back it gives a music and now picks up.It only says it is a local call and the phone # 703-539-5978

been getting this call for past three days. when I call back it gives a music and now picks up.It only says it is a local call and the phone # 703-539-5978

This is not a scam charity I donate money to the fraternal order of police namely because 1, my father was in Law enforcment for 40 years. 2, the money goes towards the law enforcement memorial wall and I happen to know a couple people who are on the wall.

This is a scam tele fundraiser for it would seem multiple charities that are questionable themselves. However, in most states they must start their pitch by saying

"Hello, my name is (full name of fundraiser registered with the SOS or AG) and I am a paid fundraiser with (full name of fundraising company registered with AG or SOS) and I am calling "on behalf" of (full name of charity registered with AG or SOS)

If they do not do this and they claim to be members of the group they are raising money for then they are committing fraud against the donor. It is considered in some States to be "Obtaining Money By False Pretenses" and in others it is considered "Theft By Deception" and still other States considered it to be "Larceny". But no matter what you call it it is stealing from the Donor. In some cases when they get caught they are fined as much as 40 grand per call. I read our States Charitable Solicitation's Act and it looks like very few of these companies are raising money according to the Law's of our State and I will bet that if you read your States Charitable Solicitation Act you will find the same to be true.

When they claim to be a member of the group they are raising money for, as this company is doing, it is damaging all other charities that do not use so called "Professional Fundraiser's" to raise money. They all know this but they continue to steal from "us" the donating public. Fundraiser's like this must be put out of business as they lie to the donor and they do this because some of these so called fundraisers get to keep as much as 99% of the money they collect and they use that money to call us over and over again to ask us for more money that they can use to call us over and over again. If you want to give money to charity then the best way is to hang up on the tele fundraiser committing fraud and search out the charity yourself.

This company seems to be calling for Police Fire and Veteran's groups as well as medical and children's groups. All of which are wasting the bulk of your donation on fundraising and administrative costs like salary's for the charity officials. You can find out more about this scam group at http://www.pfcl.org/

They are the people whose information took out the United States Navy Veterans Association that stole 99.6 million in donations last year. They were also behind the demise of Civic Development Group out of NJ and the FTC's Operation False Charity in 2009 Nationwide based on their book "The Fraud Happen's In The First 8 Word's" which was sent out to all AG's and SOS's. They say they have contacts with the AG's, SOS's ,DHS, FTC, DOJ, FCC and Secret Service across the Country and their tips have been used in some of the largest Charity Fraud investigation's Nationwide as well as other Countries.  You can also find their book called "What The Fundraiser's Say" at a link on their site. They say they are a Church Group and they say this is the Mission of this Church to protect donations going to Police Fire Veteran Medical and Children's Charities. That book is a real eye opener made up of comments by the people calling you. After reading it, I will sure never make a donation over the phone again to any group that use so called "Professional Fundraiser's" that operate outside of the law and use illegal techniques to steal money from little sick kids or cops or firefighters or anyone else who really needs it.

Anyway, the long and short of it is, GIVE DIRECTLY AND CUT OUT MIDDLEMAN COMPANIES THAT CALL YOU!

Oh btw, the do not call list DOES apply to Professional Fundraiser's. Now if the charity actually picked up the phone and called then, yes, they are exempt from the DNC, but that is not what is happening here with this caller. This caller is Corporations for Character out of Murry Utah calling on behalf of the Fraternal Order of Police and the FTC just sued them for 26.4 billion dollars worth of DNC violations. That is 16 million violations at 16 thousand dollars each.

The FOP is a good group for the most part but they need to do their own fundraising instead of contracting a company like this one to raise money. So, if you want to help the cops or the FOP, dont do it over the phone and send your check right to your local lodge. They get every dollar of it that way, instead of some telemarketer taking 85% or more of every dollar.

Here is the FTC press release about this company

For Release: 05/09/2011
FTC Charges Utah Operation with Deceptive and Abusive Telemarketing
Defendants Allegedly Made 16 Million Calls to Numbers on the Do Not Call Registry; Misrepresented How Funds Would Be Used
At the request of the Federal Trade Commission, the Department of Justice today filed a complaint that charges three Utah-based firms and their owner with waging deceptive and illegal telemarketing campaigns pitching movies and soliciting for donations, including calls to more than 16 million phone numbers on the National Do Not Call Registry.

The FTC charged that the companies and their owner, Forrest S. Baker III, committed multiple violations of the FTC Act and the Telemarketing Sales Rule, and deceived customers about where the proceeds from their purchases and their donations would go.

According to the FTC’s complaint, Baker controls a group of Utah-based companies that produce and market films and DVDs and solicit charitable contributions from consumers nationwide, including Feature Films for Families, Inc., Corporations for Character, L.C., and Family Films of Utah.

The complaint states that in 2008 and 2009 the defendants conducted a nationwide calling campaign under the name “Kids First,” in which they offered to send two complimentary DVDs and requested feedback on whether the movies should be included on a list of recommended movies. However, the defendants did not disclose that consumers who agreed to participate would later receive calls pitching DVDs produced by the defendants.

Moreover, the defendants’ telemarketers allegedly told consumers that “all of the proceeds of this fundraiser will help us finish up creating this recommended viewing list to help parents and grandparents, like us, with a list we can trust.” In fact, the organization responsible for the Kids First recommended viewing list, the Coalition for Quality Children’s Media, did not receive all the proceeds. The complaint alleges that the defendants received at least 93 percent of the DVD sales proceeds.

The FTC also alleges that, between 2009 and 2010, the defendants conducted fundraising campaigns for organizations with names related to fraternal orders of police (FOPs) and firefighters. The defendants receive most of the donations raised by these campaigns, and the organizations retain only 15 to 33 percent.

The Commission alleges that, in order to persuade donors to give money, the defendants made multiple false and misleading misrepresentations about the nature or purpose of the organizations for which the defendants requested donations, the way in which charitable contributions will be used, and the percentage or amount of any charitable contribution that will go to an organization. For example, the complaint alleges that the defendants falsely represented to donors that administrative costs are a “very minimal amount” and that contributions were used or would be used for safety-related officer training, bulletproof vests, or financial assistance to victims when, in fact, the organization for which the defendants were soliciting did not fund these activities, or used only an incidental amount of the contributions for such activities.

The FTC’s complaint also alleges that the defendants have repeatedly called numbers on the National Do Not Call Registry in their telemarketing campaigns. In calls made under the name Kids First, the FTC alleges, the defendants made more than five million calls to consumers whose numbers were on the Registry. The complaint further charges that, since June 2007, the defendants have made approximately nine million additional illegal telemarketing calls to phone numbers that are on the Do Not Call Registry to sell Feature Films for Families DVDs.

The FTC alleges that in another calling campaign in 2009, the defendants called consumers to urge them to buy tickets to see “The Velveteen Rabbit,” a film produced by Baker and released in theaters before going to DVD. The FTC complaint alleges that the defendants’ telemarketers made no effort to avoid calling consumers on the Do Not Call Registry. During this two-week campaign, the defendants called more than two-and-a-half-million consumers whose numbers were on the Do Not Call Registry.

In addition, the complaint charges that the defendants violated the Telemarketing Sales Rule by:

calling consumers who have previously asked that the defendants stop calling them;
failing to provide the name of the telemarketer or seller making the call to Caller ID devices and, instead, providing names such as “CUSTOMER SVC,” “FAMILY VALUE CB” or “VELVETEEN”;
failing to orally identify the seller, the purpose of the call, and the nature of the goods or services when making telemarketing calls; and
abandoning calls to consumers by failing to connect consumers to live representatives when they answer the phone. In many cases, such abandoned calls lead to the recipients listening to “dead air” when they answer the call.
The Commission vote referring the complaint to the Department of Justice was 5-0. The complaint was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District for the Northern District of Florida. It names as defendants Feature Films for Families, Inc.; Corporations for Character, L.C.; Family Films of Utah, Inc.; and Forrest Sandusky Baker III, individually and as an owner and principal of Feature Films for Families, Inc., Corporations for Character, L.C., and Family Films of Utah, Inc.

The complaint, filed by the Department of Justice at the request of the FTC, seeks a court order to permanently bar the defendants from violating the FTC Act and the Telemarketing Sales Rule, as well as civil penalties, and disgorgement of their ill-gotten gains.

NOTE: The Commission approves a complaint when it has “reason to believe” that the law has been or is being violated and it appears to the Commission that a proceeding is in the public interest. The complaint is not a finding or ruling that the defendant has actually violated the law. The case will be decided by the court.
The Federal Trade Commission works for consumers to prevent fraudulent, deceptive, and unfair business practices and to provide information to help spot, stop, and avoid them. To file a complaint in English or Spanish, visit the FTC’s online Complaint Assistant or call
1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357). The FTC enters complaints into Consumer Sentinel, a secure, online database available to more than 2,000 civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad. The FTC’s website provides free information on a variety of consumer topics. “Like” the FTC on Facebook and “follow” us on Twitter.

MEDIA CONTACT:
Mitchell J. Katz,
Office of Public Affairs
202-326-2161
STAFF CONTACT:
Michael Tankersley,
Bureau of Consumer Protection
202-326-2991
(FTC File No. 1023023; Civ. No. 11-197)
(Feature Films.final.wpd)

And here is the case link
http://www.ftc.gov/os/caselist/1023023/110506featurefilmscmpt.pdf



Plenty of info at www.pfcl.org

This number calls me two to three times per day.  The one time I answered, the man said he was with the Virginia State Police Department and that they were collecting money for teddy bears that are put in the backseat of patrol cars for children when they are taken away from crime scenes.  I said that I was not interested in donating over the phone - I continue to get these calls, at all hours of the day, and on the weekends.

that number keeps calling and no one is on the line

I want this 703-539-5978 to stop calling me. It said they were the Virginia State Police Association. And also gave me this number to call after I did some investigating on this number. The number they gave me to call was 1-800-430-4936. I am a Criminal Justice Private Investigator so I can trace numbers. It seems like it was some kind of donation call from the Virginia State Police Association.

I have had daily calls from this number but they always hang up when I answer them.

These bozos have been calling for months now, sometimes several time a week.  I often pick up the phone and immediately hang up on them.  They just don't get the hint here that nobody at my number wants to talk to them, they just keep calling anyway.  The do not call list is a joke.

i've gotten several calls, always says "local number" and when i pick up they hang up.

I got a call from this number today. They said something about Virginia state police and teddy bears.

Repeated calling, no response when phone answered.  Annoying.

This number calls between 4-6 times a day to a dedicated fax line. ID says Local Call

Very abrupt male voice asking to speak with the owner.

Got a call from this number today.  Caller ID says "LOCAL CALL" Like I'm dumb enough to pick it up when 703 area code shows.  Thats not my area code!!  Get a Life!!

The exact same thing happened to me just now. I was at the computer and answered the phone, expecting a bill collector. After a little chit-chat, I agreed to donate $25 and was transferred to someone else. I should've hung up then, but I thought they were just going to get my address or something to send a payment notice of some sort. I try not to give credit card numbers over the phone unless I initiated the call, but somehow they caught me off guard, and I felt so stupid immediately after the call.

I checked my account, which didn't have any charges yet, and cancelled the card. Now I have to wait a few weeks for a new card.

Started getting the calls about 2wks after got cable/phone line installed thankfully my habit is not to  pick up for calls I do not know -let em leave a message I'll get back to them if they are important- otherwise G*T*H**L.
Life is too short to let this lot get any of my precious time I suggest we all get caller ID or let em leave a message
The company is located near the corner of Maple Ave West and Park Street SouthEast in Vienna VA which is a D*MN EXPENCIVE PLACE TO HAVE AN OFFICE LET ALONE A HOUSE!
I have heard that these calls can be made for charities who are not covered by the do not call list but what do they do with the info you give the person on the other end of the phone if you DO want to make a donation what binding assurance do you get that this is ligitamate or that your info will not be used to steal from you? Has anyone checked with the "State Police" (which particular state IS that anyway)? Have you ever known a state trooper to be rude and annoying ? So why should thier so called charitable organizations be? Report them to the FCC and FTC as violations which can cost them 16000 USD apiece for each infraction keep howling and these watchdogs will have to do something more about this scam. Stay safe out there and DO NOT GIVE ANYONE YOU DID NOT CALL ANY OF YOUR PERSONAL INFO OVER THE PHONE
REMEBER THE OLD WWII MILITARY RESPONCE WHEN SOMEONE CALLS LOOKING FOR INFORMATION
" I CAN NOT GIVE YOU THAT INFORMATION SIR/MADAM.
I DO NOT KNOW THAT YOU ARE WHO YOU SAY YOU ARE.
TO ME YOU ARE JUST A VOICE ON THE PHONE!"

Cindy, even if the Fraternal Organization of Police and the Virginia State Police Association are legitimate charitable organizations, the people calling from THIS phone number are obviously not legitimate. I hope you can distinguish the difference, and do not get scammed yourself.