Colorado halts operations, freezes assets of company allegedly creating fake documents
An Aurora company recently offered dozens of fake documents for sale such as bank statements, medical marijuana cards and college degrees.
That is, they were until July 28. That's when a Denver judge ordered the company, PropDoks, to immediately stop its production and sale of its documents. The order also froze the company's assets.
The business advertised its products as theatrical props, educational tools and good material for playing a joke. Other products included: eviction notices, police reports, high school diplomas, temporary protection orders or child custody paperwork, complete with a judge's signature. Also featured were titles, out-of-state temp tags and proof of insurance for vehicles. Or a resumé with a letter of certification to operate heavy machinery or work as a nurse, regardless of your actual training.
Consumer protection investigators and state prosecutors branded the offerings as fraudulent, devastating, and even dangerous.
"The false documents this company sold, including those used by criminals to victimize Coloradans and to fool law enforcement and other officials, were not harmless props," stated Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser in a press release.
"Defendants know that their documents will be used to commit fraud; they do not care," prosecutors wrote in the state's complaint against Visual Prop Studios LLC.
Visual Prop Studios is the entity that was doing business as PropDoks. It is registered with the state by its owner, Erdis Moore III, a 49-year-old Aurora resident. The three-year-old business is registered to Moore's home address near Utah Park. However, customers are directed to a storefront once they've made a purchase on the company's website (which is now inoperative). Since the company refused to mail or deliver documents, customers were directed to this storefront to pick up their purchases directly.
That's precisely what an investigator with the Colorado Department of Law did three times since March. The undercover investigator purchased a false tax return, a temporary license plate and an insurance card, then a false protection order and child custody order.
The fake insurance card, in small, light print where the card would normally be cut from the form, contained the phrase, "Not for official use For video prop use only," according to the complaint. A similar warning adorned the temp tag but was not visible when the document was placed in a tag holder for display on a car.
The protection order and child custody order showed fraudulent signatures from a court judge.
Each time the investigator arrived at the storefront to pick up documents, she observed numbers of people filling out orders and purchasing documents. She also saw a sign which stated, "We Make Proof of ANYTHING," and ""Your Imagination Is Our Limitation." Another sign instructed customers to not tell the business how the fake documents were going to be used.
The complaint lists the location of the storefront as 970 South Oneida Street, Unit 200.
The Propdoks website contained a disclosure:
Disclaimer: Purchaser of any prop item ordered online, either prop document(s), or custom created document(s), shall assume all liability for any attempt or intent to fraud or any mis-use. Purchaser has not discussed usage for any PropDok items, to an employee of PropDok's. All items made by PropDok's are made for video prop, theatrical, novelty, or educational use only.
But prosecutors described the disclosure as dishonest, and the business's deliberate ignorance of its products' uses as "flimsy pretense."
"Through this disclaimer," the complaint stated, "Defendants attempt to shield themselves from the foreseeable results of their actions. But Defendants cannot post a series of magic words to remove themselves from the chain of events that begins with false documents, many of which carry significant legal implications, and ends with the commission of fraud on unsuspecting individuals."
Prosecutors claim the business has filled tens of thousands of orders over the past two years and expanded its offerings to more than 70 types of false documents.
The fraudulent certificates for job training were a particular concern to prosecutors.
"While some of the positions Defendants provided verification for included general office jobs, Defendants also offered resume verification for fields in which Coloradan's lives and safety depend on professionals' proper training and credentials," the complaint stated. "Defendants' conduct is unconscionable in part because their actions have placed the public at risk."
The complaint also alleges the business, while in good standing with the Secretary of State, did not obtain a business license to operate in Denver. Nor have sales taxes been remitted on the revenue from the storefront, which prosecutors claim is hundreds of thousands of dollars.
No criminal charges have been filed thus far in the case. The next procedure, a status hearing, is scheduled for Aug. 21.
CBS News Colorado placed a phone call to Moore and left a voicemail message Saturday, but has yet to receive a reply.
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State prosecutors ask that anyone who believes they may have fallen victim to scams involving false documents created by PropDoks should file a complaint with the attorney general at stopfraudcolorado.gov.