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Deceptive credit scam draws time in prison

Wednesday, March 2, 2005 | 8:34 a.m.

A Las Vegas man has been sentenced to 51 months in federal prison in what officials said is the first criminal contempt prosecution related to a deceptive credit repair scheme.

U.S. District Judge S. James Otero on Monday in Los Angeles sentenced Richard Murkey Sr., 58, to the prison term and ordered him to pay $126,000 in restitution, according to Thom Mrozek, a spokesman for the U.S. attorney.

Murkey pleaded guilty in April 2004 to four counts of criminal contempt of court. He used infomercials, newspaper advertisements and other means to lure consumers into purchasing his credit repair services, Mrozek said. By luring consumers into purchasing his services, Murkey caused false and misleading statements to be made to Trans Union about his customers' credit histories. This violated a federal court order issued in 1999, Mrozek said.

In the 1999 court order, Murkey was banned from offering credit repair services and from promising consumers more than he could deliver. He was also barred from misleading credit reporting companies about his clients' credit histories, Mrozek said.

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