[NEohioPAL]ALERT: Modeling Scam Targets Cleveland

[ruffnerjh at att.net]

Hi all:

This may be preaching to the choir, but if you've been approached to scout for 
or sign with a modeling agency calling itself Trans Continental Talent, please 
read the following information. This group is an evidently common scam that has 
targeted several cities across the country and is now setting up shop in 
Cleveland.

Formerly known as Options Agency as well as eModel, TCT is now claiming to have 
a direct link to internationally recognized Wilhelmina Model Agency. The con is 
a smooth one: They come to town, recruit local talent as "scouts," who pass on 
word to friends without representation. The friends meet with sales reps, who 
offer to get their face plastered across the internet for a few hundred bucks 
(plus monthly maintenance fees). It's a good swindle: The business is so 
unsure, by the time you realize that your money was ill-spent, they've moved on 
to another city to play the same game.

For more information regarding this specific group, who are currently under 
investigation in California, Georgia, Florida and Michigan, check out the 
following sites:

http://www.modelingadvice.com/Questions.html#anchor9846

The site includes links to various news reports investigating the group's 
activities. Scary stuff.

If you have become involved with TCT, you should probably cut ties as soon as 
possible. If you've given them any credit card information, here is a site that 
advises how to dispute any charges that may incur:

http://austin.craigslist.org/ars/10319400.html

I hope this helps. 

Keep aware!

Joe Ruffner