Men want out of selling magazines, get beat with baseball bats, golf clubs

By SABRA GERTSCH

TACOMA -- A meeting of magazine salesman at a hotel room on Monday night ended with two in the hospital and six others in jail.

Investigators say trouble began after the group gathered at a room at the Best Night Inn in Tacoma.

When two of the men announced they wanted out of the magazine-selling operation, they were beaten with baseball bats and golf clubs.

The attackers ran off, but just blocks away, police stopped a white SUV that didn't have its headlights on.

Police grew suspicious when one of the men inside the car lied about his name. When officers found that same person was armed with brass knuckles and a gun, all six men in the car were taken into custody.

What's more, the state Attorney General's Office says the men were not selling magazines.

Order forms for a company called Fresh Start Opportunities were found in the hotel room. Just a few weeks ago, the attorney general issued a second warning about a door-to-door scam involving a company by that name.

Fresh Start claims to give young adults a fresh start on life with the money consumers pay for magazine subscriptions. But people across the country reported getting no magazines for their donations ranging from $50 and $800.

The two victims' conditions were not known. The six men who were arrested have been booked into the Pierce County Jail.