Says man made $300,000 promising to recover fraud funds

Tuesday, May 20, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.

Mark Dittmar made more than $300,000 through three companies that falsely promised victims of telemarketing fraud that their money would be recovered for a fee.

As part of the scam, Dittmar's companies said they would be assisted by law enforcement agencies and attorneys, according to the Nevada U.S. attorney's office.

Dittmar pleaded guilty to the fraudulent business scams.

U.S. District Judge Philip Pro also fined him $45,300, which will be returned to those he victimized.

The government's prosecution of Dittmar is part of an ongoing effort by law-enforcement officials to rid Las Vegas of fraudulent telemarketers.

In 1995, the National Consumers League said Nevada ranked fifth in the nation in the number of fraudulent telemarketing companies.

This year, the state slipped to sixth place and Las Vegas federal prosecutors credit federal agents and local police for the drop.

Dittmar was notorious within local law-enforcement circles, and occasionally was spotted in Las Vegas driving Corvettes, Mercedes and Porsches. Authorities at one time said he carried as much as $20,000 cash in his pocket.

The government said he owned three companies, Federal Consumer Protection Inc., Certified Consultants and Expert Consulting, which operated in 1993 and 1994 and made more than $258,000 illegally.

In 1995, Dittmar ran rip-and-tear telemarketing schemes that involved calling consumers from pay phones, cellular phones and hotel rooms. Victims were told that money they had lost to other telemarketers had been recovered or that they had won a large cash award.

Dittmar promised these victims the money once they had sent in a fee or prepaid taxes. The government maintains that Dittmar's rip-and-tear activities made $66,100.