Minnesota
Minnesota couple charged with
running Amazon sales scheme
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A Minnesota company and its two owners were charged with running an illegal sales scheme on Amazon that prosecutors said collected more than $15 million from consumers over the past year.
The Federal Trade Commission and the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office recently filed a complaint in federal court that names Jessie and Matthew Tieva, and their company Sellers Playbook, the Star Tribune reported. Another company affiliated with the couple, Exposure Marketing, was also named as a defendant.
The complaint alleged that Sellers Playbook made “false and unsubstantiated” claims, including that its customers could make $20,000 a month and a potential net profit of $1.29 million by selling on Amazon. The couple offered the Sellers Playbook system to consumers through a variety of marketing mechanisms, including email, websites, webinars, online videos and social media, according to the complaint. Sellers Playbook also conducted seminars in cities throughout the U.S.
The complaint also claimed that prior to the creation of Sellers Playbook, Jessie Tieva, through Exposure Marketing, had participated in a similar scheme.