Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster announced today suits against two area mortgage-refinancing companies that allegedly called consumers who have placed their telephone numbers on the state’s Do-Not-Call registry.

Koster’s office says in a press release that the suit is part of a “zero-tolerance stance against illegal mortgage operations.” Last month, Koster sued two other refinance companies, arguing that they misled consumers with deceptive mailers, and a third firm for allegedly bilking consumers with a useless and expensive foreclosure-consulting service.

The latest suit is against SJS Investments and A & J Mortgage Brokers, which does business as Equity One Mortgage. The companies are based in St. Peters and Hillsboro, Missouri.

Koster’s office sought temporary restraining orders on May 22  to force the companies to comply with Missouri telemarketing laws.

Koster said in a press release, “Missouri law clearly protects residents from receiving unwanted calls from companies they have no established business relationship with… We will continue to aggressively pursue businesses that harass customers with unwanted phone calls, taking action to force them to stop as well as pay penalties for violating Missouri law.”

An employee who answered the phone at A&J Mortgage said that only the firm’s owners could speak to reporters and that they were unavailable. When I called SPJ Investments, I was forwarded to Scott Kline, who identified himself as one of the owners of Equity One.

“I don’t know what this is all about,” said Kline of the suit. He declined to discuss the allegations but said he plans to meet with Koster to discuss the case this week.