Vermont AG files suit against telemarketer company who harassed state legislators

/ April 3, 2022

By Brent Addleman | The Center Square

A civil lawsuit has been filed by the state’s top law enforcement official alleging a Missouri-based telemarketing company harassed the state’s elected officials.

Attorney General T.J. Donovan announced Thursday his office filed a civil suit against Karabell Industries and its owner, Eli Karabell. The suit alleges the company made illegal telemarketing calls to state legislators and harassing them to pay Karabell large sums of money.

Lou Varricchio/TNR

Vermont Attorney General TJ Donovan

“Companies that bring illegal calls into Vermont can expect to be held accountable,” Donovan said in the release. “My office will continue to investigate and bring charges against companies that are breaking the law and targeting Vermonters.”

Donovan, according to the release, filed the suit in Washington Superior Court. He said “numerous state legislators” complained to his office of “receiving late-night phone calls” from Karabell Industries who “claimed to offer ‘government consulting services.’”

According to the release, “the defendants then emailed state legislators proposing contracts” and at the same time “demanding payments of $18,500 per hour or even $48 billion.”

The suit alleges the company, while ignoring requests to stop, have violated the state’s Consumer Protection Act and Telephone Solicitation Act.

On Thursday, Donovan announced a preliminary injunction was put in place by the court against Karabell Industries because the company’s actions are taking the legislators “away from their time and work on behalf of the public.”

Donovan issued a tweet Thursday stating, “The court has required Karabell Industries to cease all business and telemarketing activity in VT & refrain from contacting anyone in VT about any marketing, sales, offers, or otherwise.”

He said his office will continue “to monitor the matter to ensure that this harassment stops.”

In the injunction, Donovan said, the “Defendants have repeatedly called state legislators, including those on the Do Not Call Registry” as late as 11 p.m. to 3 a.m.

Donovan, according to the release, sent a cease-and-desist letter to the company on Feb. 9, which was ignored, and the company continued to call state legislators.

According to the release, the lawsuit not only seeks to prevent the company from contacting state legislators, but also seeks civil penalties and costs.

The lawsuit comes on the heels of a suit filed last week against a California-based company, Telecon Carries Access, who was operating under the TCA VOIP name. The suit, against the company and its ownership, allegedly instituted “thousands of robocalls into Vermont.” In 2021, the attorney general settled a lawsuit with Strategic IT Partner, a company based in Florida, for routing thousands of illegal robocalls into the state.

Image courtesy of Lou Varricchio/TNR

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5 thoughts on “Vermont AG files suit against telemarketer company who harassed state legislators”

  1. Here’s another tactic where by our representatives can’t be questioned

    https://www.infowars.com/posts/twitters-autoblock-feature-blocks-citizens-from-responding-to-or-even-seeing-elected-politicians-tweets/

    These are not coincidences, “just happening” at the same time. There is a massive roll out to stifle any open questioning of government, the opposite of free speech.

    Do you think it was a “coincidence” that across the nation, in every public library and school we had drag queen story hour the same month? Suddenly all the drag queens spontaneously at the same time said, “You know I have a desire to read books to little kids in public places.”

    It’s a complete roll out.

    In subverting the united states, it was openly declared and planned to confuse the population about their sexuality. Look at the Vermont bills. Your daughter and son could be good prostitutes in the eyes of the state.

  4. It takes a few telemarketing calls to our precious politicians for anyone to even attempt to stop calls 24/7. Meanwhile the general population has been ignored for years by law enforcement over millions of calls day and night from these people, why now Donavan?

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