Wilmington company under investigation by Attorney General appears out of business

WILMINGTON, N.C. (WECT) - A Wilmington company that made headlines last year now appears to be out of business. DTopp was an online reputation management company started by a convicted felon who said he’d learned a thing or two about needing to overcome an image problem.

David Topping told us he wanted a fresh start after he’d been convicted as a teenager, accused of ripping people off through a business he started in Brunswick County.

He started DTopp in downtown Wilmington, and would help people clean up their online profiles, and remove negative reviews, for a fee. In the beginning, we heard from a few customers who were highly satisfied with their experience, but the tide quickly turned.

We then heard from at least a dozen customers who said Topping had taken their money, and failed to perform the promised services or honor his money back guarantee. We also heard from DTopp employees complaining they never got paid. In response to our story on those concerns, DTopp disputed the claims and threatened to sue WECT for defamation.

One customer took his concerns to Wilmington Police and at last check, 15 people had filed complaints about DTopp with the Attorney General’s office. While the AG’s office opened an investigation, law enforcement has yet to take action.

One disgruntled customer recently notified us the DTopp website was down. We confirmed that, and saw the Better Business Bureau has this company listed as out of business. We tried to reach Topping on the cell phone number he gave us, but the number had been disconnected.

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