Really. I have about 10 saved messages from this number and another that originates in Virgina. They have been calling for the better part of two months now. The most recent name the same person is giving is John Smith; how original. I had a bit of a break when I got the first two interesting messages from a guy who had a very American name and a very thick Middle Eastern accent. (Sound familiar to everyone else). Anyhow, after calling back the first time, I was basically told the same thing. And then he got a little nasty when I began asking when the loans originated. To my complete and utter suprise and overwhealming joy, he said they originated two years ago. He became thoroughly irritated when I told him the joke was on them. I told him I did not have an account matching that account number two years ago. As a matter of fact, I was banking with another bank entirely until five months ago. Wake up America. Scammers are as old as time and have just gotten a little faster at obtaining our information from the internet. Any time we enter our information for a internet loan, this is how they have your info, you become a "Lead" to any company that is willing to pay the money for your information. I am not done with these people yet. I am currently researching any information I can find on them and any legal loopholes that may apply to thier scam...

I just received a call from the same number and they told me it was Paul White. When I told them I wasn't available they made the comment OMG really

It's a scam. I have looked them up also and they are a scam. Call your BBB and report them. And don't give out any of your information to them and don't pay off the "loan" balance they are trying to get you you to pay. They actually called my job threatening to send all of my legal documents to my job via fax and that I was gonna lose my job. They are a bunch of crooks!!

Yeah I am getting these calls too and they are telling me I owe them $3000 and that I took out a loan from them like 2 years ago which I never have and I asked them what it was for and how much it was and they said they couldn't tell me anything.  So I am going to answer it the next time they call and tell them that I know its a scam and that I am calling the police on them and to stop harrasssing me and not to call my former place of work.

I got rid of them by telling them that the local authorites were now taking care of this situation for me. The detective from my county PD called them and informed me that if they continue calling that it will be bigger. Also report it to the ftc and donotcall registry.

I have been getting several calls a week from these Indian scam artists. Yesterday was this number claiming if I don't call back within 6 hours I will be picked up by police tomorrow. Any right person knows that a " debt collector " can't arrest you at work without taking you to court first. Plus, if you can't tell me what the debt is for. THis is just someone who purchased your information to harrass you. I have a ongoing report with my local police department, the ftc, and also donotcall.gov. If you call your local police they will even call the people.

I got a call from this number. caller sounded middle eastern.  I tried to inquire where he was from. He said "law office in LA county" wouldnt give me any other name. He told me i had taken a cash advance and never repaid it. Also I would be going to jail.   He then said he was part of the "federal investigation department". the only name i was given was "Frank Letsin".

Received a phone call saying they were with the state attorney generals office, This frightened me, said I needed to pay $300 by 12 noon or there would be a warrant for me in my country and I would have to present myself in court, and then it could be $3000 or 3 months in jail.  What is this all about, they do not speak good English and when I asked for someone else to understand it was no better.  When I asked for supervisor they said there was not one, I asked for a phone number from the company was supposedly filing a lawsuit against me, and they said there was not one.  Dan Stewart and Frank Wilson, the second got very rude and screaming at me, and finally hung up.  When I tried calling back I just receive voice mail, they have my SSN#

Got a call from this number, Dan Stewart claims he is from the state attorney generals office, says there is a lawsuit against me from US Cash Advance from last year, wants me to pay $300 immediately or else I will be issued a warrant and have to present myself in court.  I asked to speak to someone else regarding this matter, never had a loan, this man spoke broken english, the next person Frank Wilson was not much better, said if I did not pay this by 12 noon it would go to court and I would pay up to $3000 or set in jail for 3 months. When I tried to get information or speak to a supervisor he kept yelling at me, and finally hung up.  I told him to quit yelling, and threatening me.

UPDATED: I blocked the # through verizon! Hope it works!! It is a scam I will never call them back!! ; /

Getting a message like all the above..I dont answer & ne4ver will going to see if Verizon will block this number!!! I dont think they even can do what they are threatening by laws in certain states etc. If i do answer i will let them know the President of the U.S.A. is my close friend & said for them to call them!! He isnt but I can dish out too!! Not scared at all!! It is however very annoying and cant undertand a word that is coming out of his mouth..lol

Same thing here. They claim I owe over 5000 and I need it to them by today. They have called me 30 times today and I refuse to talk to them. They threaten to take me ti jail

Now I am being threatened.  Fraud, bad check charge, etc.  All I did was ask that they send me paperwork on these offenses and the hung up on me.

I am going through this right now. They have called my cell phone just this morning alone 12 times. What did you do to stop them? Can they actual arrest or do anything to you? I have contacted the CA attorney general, FBI, ftc and ic3.

Thank you for this information. So how do I go about stopping them from harrassing me? I have already filed a complaint with the FTC but what do I do when they still threaten?

I received a yellow sticky on my desk when I returned to work.  I am not sure what it is about.  However, the note say Dept of Legal Affairs, Paul white with an extension.  First, I don't know if I should call.  I think they want my personal address or work address to send some kind of papers.  I can't call from work, but they are harassing me.  Are there any suggestions?

Under http://800notes.com/forum/ta-4f7d326029dcf9d/ ... lectors-finally

Even scam artists are outsourcing. On Tuesday in its first crackdown on fraudulent telemarketing in South Asia, the Federal Trade Commission announced that it was shutting down two California-based companies that used a call center in India to defraud Americans out of more than $5 million over the past two years.

Workers in India made threatening calls to Americans getting them to pay money on debts that they didn't owe, the FTC charges. At an FTC press conference in Chicago on Tuesday, fraud victim JanLaree DeJulius explained that she had received a call from someone claiming to be an enforcement officer from the (phony) "Federal Department of Crime and Prevention," who threatened to have her arrested and have her wages garnished if she didn't pay a bill of more than $730. The scam artists had gotten her name and information from a payday loan her ex-husband had taken out in her name.

"It was very embarrassing," Dejulius said. "He knew everything about me so I agreed to set up an installment." She is not alone. According to the FTC, more than 8 million calls were made since 2010 and at least 17,000 transactions processed across the United States related to the global scam.

On Tuesday under request from the FTC, a U.S. District Court in Chicago stopped the international operation, charging Varang K. Thaker and two companies he owned, American Credit Crunchers, LLC, and an affiliate Ebeeze, LLC, with violating the FTC Act and the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.

"This is a brazen operation based on pure fraud, and the FTC is committed to shutting it down," said David Vladeck, director of the FTC's consumer protection bureau. "Consumers should not be pressured into paying debt they don't remember owing. Legitimate debt collectors must provide consumers with both written information about the debt, and instructions for protecting themselves if they don't think they owe the debt."

According to the FTC's charges, Thaker used Social Security numbers and bank account numbers obtained from payday lenders to identify the victims for his scam. He outsourced the work to an Indian call center, where workers made threatening calls to American consumers to pay fake debt or collect on bills for which they were not authorized.

Thaker was not available when contacted by telephone on Tuesday. A woman who claimed to be Thaker's older sister and asked not to be named for privacy reasons said he is working with the FTC to help the Indian government pursue the fraudster call center operators. She also said he was innocent in the scam. "He was being used by somebody. He didn't even know where they got the information," she told The Huffington Post by phone. She said that her brother got 10 percent of the earnings from the scam operation.

The FTC charges against Thaker are the latest in a series of police actions by the government agency to put an end to rogue debt collection operations that have become more frequent in the aftermath of the Great Recession. In January, the FTC struck a $2.5-million settlement with debt-buying company Asset Acceptance, LLC, charging that the company had falsely represented itself to customers, including making up phantom debts that customers no longer owed. Last October, the FTC filed a complaint against seven other fraudulent debt collectors, alleging that they had engaged in the same techniques -- demanding money from customers who owed nothing at all.

The growing number of Americans who are unable to pay their bills has meant there are more companies looking to profit from their economic difficulties.

Debt collectors have been taking more aggressive tactics as fewer people are able to make ends meet or are in a cycle of debt. More than 30 million Americans are in debt collection, according to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Since 2010, more than 4,000 complaints have been filed with the FTC and state attorneys general about fraudulent debt collection calls, the FTC said.

Charles Junitkka, a personal bankruptcy attorney who represents clients in the New York City area, said, "In the last few years, the desperation of the collectors and their efforts have intensified because of the economy."

This story has been updated to reflect comment from a woman who says she is the sister of Varang Thaker. Thaker himself was unavailable for comment.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/21/ftc- ... _n_1289751.html


[admin edit March 11, 2012]
[ANNOUNCEMENT]

A network tv producer is investigating online payday loan scams where victims are constantly harassed  by callers with foreign accents impersonating American lawyers or law enforcement who threaten them with arrest or judgments.

Specifically they are looking into American Credit Crunchers shut down by the FTC.

In the Credit Crunchers case, calls were made from Ahmedabad, India. Does anyone know how these call centers operate, and whether or not this case is just the tip of the iceberg?

If you have information you're willing to share, please contact the producer offline at teriabc@gmail.com.  We have checked Teri out and she is legit.  She is also interested in getting any audiotapes of the threatening calls that were recorded at the time.

Kevin Matthews called me on friday saying I need to pay $5448.00 before 1:00pm to avoid being arrested and having my banking account and drivers license blacklisted. Also told me that I would lose my job and everything I have. He would never tell me what the money is for because he said they tried delivering something to my house but I wasn't there and they aren't allowed to give personal information over the phone. So he told me if I paid $1700 by the 22nd then he would drop the case. What do you do?

People call your local police department and make a report. They have to follow up with the L.A. Police. The more reports the better we have of getting these people to stop. Good luck. I am doing my part now

Just got a call from this person.  Told him I didn't work  here.  What is this all about?

I was threatened when I told the called that the person he was asking for, was no longer an employee of our company. I could hardly understand him, Indian, of course.  I will not answer his calls in the future.

We got the same thing!! Scared the Crap out of us! But we called the Attorney General and they said this is a huge scam going on. I feel so bad for the people who are falling for it. I called him back and went off on him! I say we flood him with calls and scare him to death!!

wow these people called me again today and said that i had to pay 564 dollars by 1 p.m. or that i will get arrested on monday then he went on to saying that he just wanted to be my friend and that he likes ladies like me and that he was going to call back in an hour because he was going to go to lunch and he even offered me to go to lunch with him... ugh how can we make this stop someone please help he also called my place of employment , he called back 7 times but i didnt answer the first time they called the #911 came out on the caller id

these people are a total scam they tell your last four digits of your social to try to scare so not cool ...they get your number online... they ask for ur lawyers number so they just can have someone else to harrass

I also got this message when I asked them for there address they didn't know what to say then they said Los Angeles and San Francisco and u can hear a bunch of middle Easterns yapping away ugh this needs to stop =(

i just same are a***ole 310_388_6342

A Jack Wilson called me saying to call this number ASAP or a warrant would be issued in my name in the state I live. When I called the number they anwsered hello which very unprofessional and I asked what this wad in reference to and they was beating around the bush so I advised then I would be contacting my lawyer and the Guy hung up please research this number not sure why they would call me I have no business in California to indicate a warrant.

These people have threatened my family, to sue me, to take money from my account.
They call night and day. Screaming explicit things such as suck my d***. And I'm a bi***.

Getting calls at work, on cell, at home ....who are these people ????

This person is calling people at home and at their place of employment, claiming that they are with the Attorney General's Office in Los Angeles, California.
I talked with the LA Attorney's General's Office and they said that this is a scam.
They said please do not give any information about yourself to any one over the phone and that the Government would never call you at home inquiring about collecting on any bills or asking for monetary funds.  They also said to hang up when you receive a call like this.