Ohio AG gets restraining order against Mahoning Valley business

YOUNGSTOWN — Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine and his counterpart in Pennsylvania got a restraining order today against a Mahoning Valley-based company for deceiving donors while soliciting for charities that cater to police and firefighters.

The restraining order was part of a lawsuit filed today against Encore Music Productions Ltd., which listed addresses in Boardman and Sharon, Pa., saying it deceived donors by not giving 100 percent of the donations to charity, as promised; telling call makers to falsely identify themselves as police officers or firefighters; and failing to identify themselves as professional solicitors.

The lawsuit, filed in Allen County Common Pleas Court under the state’s Corrupt Activities Act and the Ohio Charitable Organizations Act, names 18 defendants, almost all of them from the Mahoning Valley.

A message was left at Encore Music for comment.