AG Moody Recognizes Military Appreciation Month

TALLAHASSEE, Fla.—Attorney General Ashley Moody is recognizing May as Military Appreciation Month by highlighting consumer protection resources for military members, veterans and their families. The Attorney General’s Military and Veteran Assistance Program actively assists military members and veterans who may have been targeted by businesses and individuals that engage in unfair methods of competition or deceptive and unfair trade practices.

Attorney General Ashley Moody said, “Our military members and veterans have sacrificed so much for our country. We can never thank them enough for their service, but we can show our appreciation and offer support when needed. My office’s Military and Veteran Assistance Program works diligently to ensure that our active duty, guard and reserve members, and veterans of the Armed Forces are protected from unscrupulous businesses and individuals. MVAP also assists the families of these courageous Americans.”

The Attorney General’s Office developed MVAP to help educate military members and veterans about scams designed to target their community, what they can do to guard against fraud and how to report scams and deceptive business practices. Additionally, MVAP partners with the statewide Florida Veterans Legal Helpline. The helpline provides free advice and assistance to eligible veterans and their families on a variety of civil legal matters.

For more information on MVAP, click here.

For more information on the Florida Veterans Legal Helpline, click here.

Earlier this year, Attorney General Moody joined 10 other state attorneys general in recovering funds from a sham veterans charity based in Palm Harbor. The recovery followed a multistate investigation into Healing Heroes Network, Inc. and its former directors, along with a related entity, Hero Giveaways, LLC. The investigation revealed that the organizations promised to use donations to help wounded veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan receive medical treatments. However, very little of the funds received by the organizations were used to further this charitable mission. The stipulated judgment requires the organizations to permanently cease all charitable solicitations, and the former directors to pay $95,000, which will be distributed to a veterans’ charity that provides services similar to those the organizations claimed to provide.

To learn more about this case, click here.

Scams and deceptive business practices targeting service members and veterans can be reported to the Attorney General’s Office by calling 1(866) 9NO-SCAM or visiting MyFloridaLegal.com.