BBB alerts people to Peter Popoff scam

This week’s scam alerts come courtesy of the Better Business Bureau, which is warning local consumers that:

People United for Christ is soliciting donations via direct mail, television and its Web site in exchange for prayer.

At ministry conventions during the 1980s, the ministry’s founder, Peter Popoff, routinely and accurately stated home addresses and illnesses of audience members — a feat he wanted people to believe was due to divine revelations, the BBB says.

However, aides actually had gathered the info during earlier conversations with the audience. Popoff would simply listen to these promptings with an in-ear receiver and repeat what he heard back to the crowd.

He also featured wheelchair-bound audience members who were miraculously healed. It was later shown that these people only pretended they couldn’t walk.

Popoff is now resuming his faith healing sessions on late night TV.

The BBB has challenged this organization’s 501c3 IRS charity status.

Previous entry: Maharishi’s Minions Come to Wall Street
Next entry: India turns to Wiccan queen to save girls

More articles about Peter Popoff