HARRISBURG — Two Ohio men sued for deceptively collecting charitable donations in Butler and three other cities in Western Pennsylvania have been fined $10.8 million by the state.

The court’s ruling covers defendants Phillip Howells and Martin Vernello and their corporations, Phil’s Productions, LLC and MVP Productions, LLC.

The $10.8 million penalty, which includes restitution for consumers, civil penalties and legal costs, where announced Thursday by the state attorney general’s office that prosecuted the case.

Howells and Vernello both are barred from soliciting charitable donations in the state until the penalty is paid.

According to legal filings, the defendants operated commercial telemarketing firms based in Ohio that sold concert tickets and advertising on behalf of firefighters unions in Butler, McKeesport, New Castle and Sharon.

Telemarketers would call consumers and solicit the sale of tickets to the concerts claiming proceeds would benefit the firefighters unions and local fire prevention efforts, including Butler City Firefighters Local 114 union, according to the attorney general’s office.

However, telemarketers made a series of misrepresentations.

According to court documents, the telemarketers led consumers to believe they were firefighters or police officers when they were not. They also made misrepresentations about how much they were paid.

Other misrepresentations included telemarketers erroneously stating that 100 percent of the proceeds from the donations went to charitable efforts such as scholarships for children pursuing law enforcement and food banks.

Further misrepresentations included the false statement that charitable contributions would allow handicapped children to attend concerts for free.

Between 2008 and 2012, Howells and Vernello received more than $286,000, according to the petition for review filed with the attorney general’s office.

That office also alleged the defendants were not properly registered to solicit charitable donations in Pennsylvania.

President Jim Kaufman of Butler Local 114 said of the case: “It’s over and done with for us.”

Kaufman said the union more than two years ago paid a settlement fee to the state.

According to Jeff Johnson, assistant press secretary with the attorney general’s office, the Butler union paid $1,800 to the state in a 2014 settlement. The union also agreed to do fire safety visits to schools as in-kind restitution, Johnson said.

Pennsylvania officials worked closely with the Ohio Attorney General’s office on this investigation.