Herbalife victims participate in symposium to detect and combat pyramid schemes

More than $3.5 million has been lost by the 207 victims of Herbalife, Inc., who have filed complaints with the Illinois Attorney General’s office. The Illinois Herbalife Campaign shared those sobering stats with federal regulators and law enforcement officials who gathered for a symposium on combating pyramid schemes in Latino and immigrant communities organized by the US Securities Exchange Commission (SEC).

To further raise awareness of predatory business practices in our communities, the Illinois Herbalife Campaign’s Faces of Fraud exhibit was invited to the symposium to share the stories of how hardworking members of the community were drawn by Herbalife’s pyramid schemes. According to representatives from the SEC, speaking with actual victims at the event will help develop initiatives to alert consumers of pyramid schemes that target various ethnic and religious communities.

"This was a great event for federal regulators to meet and speak with real victims that have been scammed by pyramid schemes. We hope to have more events like these to build partnerships and raise awareness of the high rate of immigrant groups being targeted each day by fraudulent business practices," stated Maria Elena Jonas Executive Director for the Hispanic American Community Education and Services organization.

Hosted by the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) the symposium held two panels that featured federal agencies like the SEC, FTC, FBI, and the Illinois Attorney General's Office. The federal agencies came together to discuss and exchange tactics in detecting and combating pyramid schemes that target immigrant communities.

Over the last two years the Illinois Herbalife Campaign has been bringing together community organizations and elected officials by working together to assist victims of fraud. Community leaders and victims attended the symposium to emphasize the need for regulations to protect immigrant communities from pyramid schemes and to protect consumers against affinity fraud.

For more information on the Faces of Fraud exhibit or upcoming events, please email us at ilherbalies@gmail.com.

Illinois Herbalife Campaign

Please continue to share our hotline number - (855) 701-5437 - as well as notify us of any community events our organizers can participate.