Telemarketing Chief Pleads Guilty in Fraud

The president of a Woodland Hills-based 900-number firm pleaded guilty Monday to charges that he defrauded investors out of approximately $3.5 million.

Rory Cypers, 27, a veteran of unregulated telemarketing operations, pleaded guilty to one count each of mail fraud, wire fraud and criminal contempt, said Assistant U.S. Atty. Ellyn Lindsay. He is expected to be sentenced to five years in prison.

Cypers was indicted for his role in American Fortune 900, which he told investors would yield enormous profits at virtually no risk. The company ran pay-per-call lines featuring, among others, La Toya Jackson and Playboy model/New York Police Officer Carol Shaya. Neither woman was a target of the government’s investigation.

Cypers already had settled charges from the Federal Trade Commission for $100,000. His company was fined $2.5 million by the FTC, but investors recovered little of the money.