Phoney business grant nearly drained local women's bank account

Phoney business grant nearly drained local women's bank account

January 11, 2006

By DON DARE
6 On Your Side Reporter

LENOIR CITY (WATE) -- Be careful if you get a call about receiving a government grant. It could be bogus.

Over the last few months, dozens of people have called the 6 On Your Side hotline about receiving an unsolicited call or email saying they received a free government grant, one they had never applied for. To get the money, however, they had to provide information about their bank accounts.

Brianna Marcum and her mother, Shelia Sarden, wanted a grant to help strengthen the business they started last fall. It's a resale store in Lenoir City that sells gently used children's clothing and other items.

Brianna and Shelia hoped to acquire a small business grant to assist their store. In November, Brianna went online to grants.gov and applied for a small business grant for women-owned businesses.

"I had received two emails saying I was a finalist and they were reviewing my position for two of the grants," Brianna says.

Last week, a call came. The man said their grant had come through. "You have received a $5,000 government grant for your business," Sheila says.

"We thought we had hit the jackpot. We had finally made it, gotten some government assistance," Brianna says. Despite the good news, their business came close to possibly having its bank account drained.

The man who talked with Shelia gave her a code number she wrote down. He even asked for personal financial information. "He wanted my account numbers at the bank," she says.

"And you gave him the numbers?" 6 On Your Side asks. "Yes, I did, unfortunately," Sheila says. "Why?" 6 On Your Side asks. "He convinced me. He's very good. So everyone beware. He's very convincing," Sheila says.

When Brianna discovered what happened, she immediately called her bank, cancelled her business checking account, then monitored the account for any withdrawals.

"It's a good thing my mother had written all the phone numbers down," Brianna says. "If she had not gotten that information and we had not called and checked with the bank, it could have turned really ugly. We could have had a serious situation on our hands."

"I'm not familiar with this Web site at all," says Larry Rossini, who directs the Tennessee Small Business Development Center, as he looked at the site Brianna and her mother used.

Rossini says Brianna and her mother were fortunate they didn't lose big money. "Never, ever give your personal bank account number to anyone, especially someone over the phone. No, the SBA would never ask for that type of information."

6 On Your Side called the company, Advantage America, that got in touch with Sheila about the grant. They admitted they charge $350 for the grant and want your bank account information to collect the money.

6 On Your Side went online, finding hundreds of people across the country have written to complain. The Better Business Bureau has issued an alert about Advantage America saying, do not give them any personal information, like a checking account number.

"You're lucky," 6 On Your Side says. "Yes, very fortunate that we got on it when we did because if we had let it go, we probably had lost everything," Sheila says.

If you apply for a grant and Advantage America responds, be very careful. The lady 6 On Your Side talked with at Advantage America said the company is based in Winter Park, Florida. However, her accent didn't fit. When asked where she was located, she said St. Lucia, a Caribbean island where U.S. consumer rules and laws don't apply.