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Traveling Sales Crews
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Public Documents, Records and Editorials
Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection
Press Release:
2002/05/24
Door to door magazine sellers arrested
Contact: Glen Loyd
608-224-5007
Original URL
State law enforcement agencies and the Milwaukee and Oak Creek Police investigating a
door-to-door magazine crew have uncovered a seller wanted for burglary charges in Arizona.
A marijuana stash was also found.
The investigation started when another crew member was arrested in Milwaukee for disorderly
conduct after being cited for selling without a license. The crew works for Pacific Coast Clearing
Services of Gig Harbor, Washington. Most crew members are 18 to 25 years old.
Assisting the police in the investigation are the Wisconsin Department of Justice and the
Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection.
The Consumer Protection Office in Eau Claire warned the magazine crew that its sales pitch
violated Wisconsin Law. Sellers ask customers to help them "win a contest," when state law
requires them to say upfront they are selling magazines. Despite the warning,
the crew allegedly continued to mislead customers.
"Consumers should be wary of door-to-door magazine crews," says Fran Tryon, director of the
Bureau of Consumer Protection. "Call the police if sellers are aggressive.
You may be able to deal with them, but think about your more vulnerable
neighbors down the street."
It is not uncommon for crew members to get into trouble and be arrested.
"We have been warning young people for years not to go with these crews," says Tryon.
The magazine companies run help-wanted ads in Wisconsin newspapers and also recruit where
young people gather, such as State Street in Madison. "Want to travel and have fun," they ask.
Madison area young people were signed up this way in 1999 by a company known as Y.E.S.,
based in DeWitt, Iowa. Seven sellers were killed in a magazine van crash caused by
irresponsible driving. Five others were severely injured. The van driver and the operators
of the company have been prosecuted.
For more information, call the toll-free hotline of the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture,
Trade and Consumer Protection: 1-800-422-7128.
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