Attorney General Jack Conway and his Office of Consumer Protection today announced that the owner of the now-closed USA Baby in Louisville, Ky., has pleaded guilty to five counts of theft by deception over $500, a Class D felony.
Lisa Marie Burden, 44, entered the plea yesterday morning in Jefferson Circuit Court. Burden was sentenced to two years in prison, which will be diverted for three years. She was also ordered to repay a total of $6,300 to the victims.
While operating USA Baby, Burden took payments from customers on baby furniture she was ordering for them through her business. She then shut the business down and refused to refund the money. Burden advised customers who paid by credit card to file for a refund through their banks; however, five customers who paid by check or debit card were unable to obtain a refund.
“My investigators immediately began reviewing this case after receiving complaints from several consumers who realized they were being taken advantage of when USA Baby abruptly shut down and locked its doors,” General Conway said. “My Office of Consumer Protection works tirelessly keeping consumers safe from unfair and unethical business practices, and I am pleased that we were able to recover restitution for each of the victims.”
For additional information on General Conway’s Office of Consumer Protection or to file a consumer protection complaint, call the Consumer Protection Hotline at 1-888-432-9257 or visit http://www.ag.ky.gov/consumer.
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