New Jersey business owner Tandria Faulkner promised dozens of people PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X systems in late 2020, took nearly $500,000 total in orders - and never delivered. It's a step beyond the usual scalper story, since bots and unscrupulous sellers (usually) at least have the stock they charge outrageous prices for.
Now, a year later, New York State Attorney General Letitia James is suing Faulkner under Executive Law 63(12), which allows James to freeze Faulkner's business assets and push for restitution for those affected.
Faulkner and her businesses, primarily Sonjia Posh Boutique and Prestigious Marketing, advertised next-gen consoles and other items up through Christmas 2020, the suit alleges, expanding its reach through word-of-mouth marketing and posting images falsely suggesting the business was in possession of the goods it sold.
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New York State Attorney General Sues Woman for Not Delivering Next-Gen Consoles
Faulker paid Prestigious Marketing reps approximately $20,000 in bonus commissions for their work accepting these orders and promised the orders would be delivered by Christmas 2020. Orders in December alone amounted to $55,000, and Faulkner reportedly delivered on none of them.
Customers demanded refunds, and were met with claims that Venmo and Apple Pay had frozen Faulkner's funds. The reality is that Faulkner had transferred hundreds of thousands of dollars into her personal accounts instead, leaving a handful of Faulkner's sales reps to try issuing refunds from their own personal accounts.
The NY Attorney General only filed the suit on December 21, so this story is still ongoing. As yet, Faulkner has issued no statement in response to the claims.
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