{"id":52491,"date":"2025-11-14T17:54:04","date_gmt":"2025-11-14T17:54:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/test.excelmedias.com\/Security\/2025\/11\/14\/attorney-general-files-complaint-against-indy-based-security-company\/"},"modified":"2025-11-14T17:54:04","modified_gmt":"2025-11-14T17:54:04","slug":"attorney-general-files-complaint-against-indy-based-security-company","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/test.excelmedias.com\/Security\/2025\/11\/14\/attorney-general-files-complaint-against-indy-based-security-company\/","title":{"rendered":"Attorney General files complaint against Indy-based security company"},"content":{"rendered":"

Article Originally Published Here<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Protection Plus employs security guards and off-duty police officers<\/p>\n

The state has filed a complaint against Indianapolis-based security company Protection Plus, saying the company is \u201cunfit to practice\u201d following federal wage law violations.<\/p>\n

The security company employs security guards and off-duty police officers at well-known agencies and businesses like Citizens Energy, Lucas Oil Stadium and the Indiana Convention Center.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It\u2019s an update to a\u00a0story WRTV Investigates first started reporting on in 2022<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Indiana Attorney General\u2019s Office files complaint October 15<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Attorney General\u2019s Office filed the complaint on October 15 with the Indiana State Private Investigator and Security Guard Board following an investigation that found \u201capparent violations of the statutes regulating the profession.\u201d<\/p>\n

The AG\u2019s investigation found two violations of Indiana code\u2014specifically that Protection Plus has \u201cbecome unfit to practice due to failure to keep abreast of current professional theory or practice, as evidenced by Respondent\u2019s repeated failure to comply with federal wage laws.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Attorney General\u2019s complaint cites violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act between May 3, 2016, through May 2, 2018, and May 13, 2018, through January 7, 2021.<\/p>\n

As WRTV Investigates has reported, the U.S. Department of Labor cited Protection Plus three times in five years for federal wage law violations.<\/p>\n

In 2018, Protection Plus paid 158 workers $98,949 in overtime back wages and liquidated damages to 158 employees.<\/p>\n

They also paid $25,000 in civil money penalty for the willful nature of their violations, according to the DOL.<\/p>\n

In 2022, WRTV reported that Protection Plus paid $370,459 in back wages and damages to 215 workers following an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor.<\/p>\n

Protection Plus, located on Lynhurst Drive on the west side, also had to pay a $69,540 civil penalty following a court order.<\/p>\n

In a third action, the U.S. Department of Labor assessed Protection Plus Inc. $27,597 in civil money penalties for \u201crepeat and willful violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act.\u201d<\/p>\n

The third federal action, announced in 2024, found 31 security professionals were owed $28,334 in overtime back wages and liquidated damages, according to the Indiana Department of Labor.<\/p>\n

\u201cProtection Plus continues to defy federal overtime wage laws, despite being found in violation in both 2018 and 2022 for the same practice. Abiding by federal wage laws is not optional,\u201d explained Wage and Hour Division District Director Aaron Loomis in Indianapolis in 2024. \u201cThe Department of Labor will continue to hold this company and its owner, Raymond Stanley, accountable for paying their workers the wages they have rightfully earned.\u201d<\/p>\n

In its October 15 complaint, the Attorney General\u2019s Office requested that the Indiana State Private Investigator and Security Guard Board impose disciplinary sanctions against Protection Plus and direct the security firm to pay all of the costs incurred in the prosecution of this case.<\/p>\n

The Board does not meet until December 2, and an agenda is not yet available.<\/p>\n

Pofessional licensing boards in Indiana can impose a wide range of sanctions, including a letter of reprimand, censure, probation and suspending or revoking a license.<\/p>\n

Protection Plus issues response to Attorney General complaint<\/strong><\/p>\n

Edward Harney, attorney for Protection Plus, issued a statement to WRTV in response to the complaint by the Indiana Attorney General\u2019s Office:<\/p>\n

\u201cAs determined by the Department of Labor, Protection Plus has strictly complied with the federal employment regulations since the 2022 Consent agreement and will continue to do so. The Administrative Complaint does not allege any additional employment regulation violations as none have occurred. Protection Plus is cooperating with the Attorney General\u2019s Office to maintain the security license Protection Plus has possessed for over thirty-five years.\u00a0\u201c\u00a0<\/p>\n

In August 2023, Protection Plus\u2019 leadership, Operations Director Billy Ingles and President Marie Stanley, sat down with WRTV Investigates to explain what happened and what the company is doing to make sure workers are accurately paid.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe haven\u2019t cheated any of our employees,\u201d said Bill Ingles, Operations Director at Protection Plus in 2023. \u201cThis wasn\u2019t an issue of fraud or anything. This was simply a miscalculation of an overtime rate.\u201d<\/p>\n

Protection Plus provides part-time employment to more than 300 civilian security guards and police officers looking to make some extra money.<\/p>\n

WRTV:<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0\u201cHow did this happen? Two federal investigations?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Ingles:<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0\u201cThis is the emotional part for us, because it\u2019s truly an honest mistake. The calculation of overtime. We didn\u2019t fail to pay any of our employees\u2019 overtime. This was simply a miscalculation of the overtime rate.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

WRTV:<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0\u201cWhat protocols do you have in place to make sure this doesn\u2019t happen again?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Ingles:<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0\u201cWe\u2019ve streamlined our pay rates. Therefore, all of our employees now make the same rate regardless of what job or what location they\u2019re working at. It\u2019s just one base rate now.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

WRTV:<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0\u201cAre you confident this won\u2019t happen again?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Marie Stanley:<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0\u201cYes, 100%. This is very personal. We always strive to be one of the best companies we can be. We\u2019re a woman-owned company, and we\u2019re very proud of that. To have something like this it\u2019s been very hard. It was unintentional.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

WRTV:<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0\u201cCan you understand why it might be difficult for some not to trust your business?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Stanley: \u201c<\/em><\/strong>It\u2019s just human nature, when people hear something negative, then yeah, they\u2019re going to be concerned. Our hopes that since we have business so long and we are part of the community, we have proven we are a solid company.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 1 filed complaint<\/strong><\/p>\n

But not everyone agrees that Protection Plus is doing its best to pay workers.<\/p>\n

The Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 1, a union that represents security officers in Indianapolis, has also raised concerns about Protection Plus.<\/p>\n

Protection Plus is not unionized, and SEIU Local 1 does not represent them.<\/p>\n

SEIU Local 1 filed a consumer complaint with the Indiana Attorney General\u2019s office in 2023 outlining the federal wage violations and asking the state to revoke Protection Plus\u2019s security guard license with the state.<\/p>\n

SEIU Local 1 President Genie Kastrup provided a statement to WRTV following the AG\u2019s complaint filed on October 15:<\/p>\n

Protection Plus should not be licensed to operate as a security company\u2014under this or any other name\u2014given their documented history of wage theft and dishonesty in their license renewal process,\u201d said Genie Kastrup, President of SEIU Local 1. \u201cSecurity officers risk their lives to keep our communities safe, and they deserve to work for employers who value integrity, fairness, and accountability. A company that cheats workers out of their pay and lies to regulators cannot be trusted to train or supervise officers responsibly. The safety of Indianapolis residents depends on ensuring that only responsible contractors, those that respect the law and working people, are allowed to hold security licenses.\u201d<\/p>\n

Protection Plus contracts in place<\/strong><\/p>\n

Protection Plus is doing work throughout the city, including Citizens Energy.<\/p>\n

\u201cCitizens Energy Group has engaged Protection Plus for security guard and traffic control services through September 2026,\u201d said Ben Easley, a spokesperson for Citizens Energy.<\/p>\n

WRTV Investigates reported in August 2023<\/a>\u00a0that the City of Indianapolis suspended Protection Plus from doing work for the city for six months.<\/p>\n

The city found Protection Plus failed to disclose to the city that a 2022 federal investigation found Protection Plus violated the Fair Labor Standards Act.\u00a0<\/p>\n

WRTV Investigates reached out to the City of Indianapolis to see if they\u2019re still using Protection Plus and a spokesperson said they are not.<\/p>\n

Some agencies have stopped using Protection Plus, including the Marion County Public Health Department, which started using in-house security after our story aired in 2022.<\/p>\n

\u201cSince late 2022, Health and Hospital Corporation of Marion County has been in the process of bringing all security services in-house,\u201d said Curt Brantingham, spokesperson for the health department. \u201cWe do not currently have any Protection Plus personnel providing security services.\u201d<\/p>\n

SEIU Local 1 has been pushing the Capital Improvement Board (CIB), which operates Lucas Oil Stadium and the Convention Center, to stop using Protection Plus.<\/p>\n

The CIB is partially funded by tax revenues, including hotel\/motel tax, food and beverage tax and auto rental tax.<\/p>\n

WRTV Investigates reached out to the Capital Improvement Board regarding Protection Plus.<\/p>\n

A CIB spokesperson said they contract with PPI for police services at events at both Lucas Oil Stadium and the Indiana Convention Center.\u00a0<\/p>\n

CIB\u2019s current contract with Protection Plus expires on April 11, 2027.<\/p>\n

The post Attorney General files complaint against Indy-based security company<\/a> appeared first on Security Guard Services Magazine<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Read More<\/a><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Article Originally Published Here Protection Plus employs security guards and off-duty police officers The state has filed a complaint against Indianapolis-based security company Protection Plus, saying the company is \u201cunfit to practice\u201d following federal wage law violations. The security company employs security guards and off-duty police officers at well-known agencies and businesses like Citizens Energy, Lucas Oil Stadium and the Indiana Convention Center.\u00a0 It\u2019s an update to a\u00a0story WRTV Investigates first started reporting on in 2022.\u00a0 Indiana Attorney General\u2019s Office […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":1971,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-52491","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-security-guard"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.excelmedias.com\/Security\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52491","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.excelmedias.com\/Security\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.excelmedias.com\/Security\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.excelmedias.com\/Security\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=52491"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/test.excelmedias.com\/Security\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52491\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.excelmedias.com\/Security\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1971"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.excelmedias.com\/Security\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=52491"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.excelmedias.com\/Security\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=52491"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.excelmedias.com\/Security\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=52491"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}