Wow! Thank God I found this website! I couldn't believe it happened to other people like us! He identified himself "Officer Jack Anderson" from the United States Crime Bureau. I knew something was wrong. He left a handful of threatening messages on my husbands cell phone. We have no idea what this is about. I just called the Miami Police Department, got a vmail, so I left my name and phone number to report this harassment and I did think he was impersonating a police officer. So many laws broken!
Thank you for all your comments. What I don't understand is that if he was reported to the police dept and the FBI, how is this still going  on? I know they must maybe take on different names, locations, and phone numbers. Thank you again for all of your comments. It confirms our suspicions. I never came across this before ever! Good luck all. The number he called from was 305-728-8667

I received 6 calls within a 15 minute period to my cell phone and my work phone from this Officer Shane Williams from United Legal.  Said my social was linked to on ongoing investigation and that I needed to call him immediately.  Received the same call last week from an Eric Williams.  Told the gentleman last week that I had paid the only payday loan I had ever done over the internet off in the month of April and that he needed to send me all the paperwork he had on my case. I also told him if he did not stop harrassing me at work I would report him to the attorney general and local law enforcement.  When I received it I would contact him again.  Today, the receptionist at my work told him to fax all the pertinent paperwork to me and gave him the number.  After reading these messages, if he were to ever threaten my children it would be on!

Called my phone multiple times saying he was shawn william saying he had a legal matter and that I was a criminal. This isnt the first time i've had them call me at work....gave me multiple numbers to call....so i read up on the numbers on the internet found out its all scams they were telling me the same thing as everyone else. So I started calling them 3-4 times in a row and just messing with them and they would get mad and hang up....quit calling for the longest time and I just got one this morning I didnt answer the first time cause it was a number i didnt know....then another call came in as UNKNOWN so i answered it and it was them than I lost the call and they called back using the other number (646-727-7049)so when they do I just tell them that I dont wanna hear it....and its a scam already read about them doing it to other people. Plus if this was a real legal matter they wouldnt use the foul language that they do.

I received a call from this number with a guy on the other side saying over and over, "Please listen and don't interupt. My name is Shane Morris and I am with United Legal Investigations. You have received a direct deposit loan to your account by the company Quick Cash Advance for the sum of $180. I am calling you today to inform you that a lawsuit is being filed against you and would you like to go ahead and settle now by paying $100 or settle this matter in your local court which may cost you $1,978." First off I called the bank, they said no money has been added to my account. So I called our local sheriff and gave him all the information. The guy with the Eastern accent hung up when the sheriff told him who it was. About 2 weeks ago the Sheriff turned all the information over to the FBI. I got another call today! The 2 weeks ago I placed a fraud alert through the 3 credit beureas. Got a new bank account and closed the old one. I asked the guy today why I have not received anything in writing. He said because my case hasn't been sent to court. I told him that I will take the matter to court and would be more than happy to find out who he really was so I could have him arrested. He didn't call back.

Message was left on my voicemail. "Officer Jack Anderson" with a collection agency.

i have been getting calls from them for a few months now, at first i was scared and not sure what to do. I am not scared anymore as i have realised that it is a scam to obtain $ from people like you and me. i must say that if you are not strong they will get the best of you and your $ for they do threaten you.

I have found out that they obtain your information from third parties who sell your email address, phone number and street adress. those third parties include websites that offer cash advance loans etc. Officer Tom Brown or Mike Robinson from the legal department (who by the way is the same person)insists that there is a charge pending against my name and social security #.

Now i have done nothing as far as trying to stop them and been ignoring them, my guess is they are using a magic jack in a foriegn country therefore not needing to abide by US Laws.

Any ideas on what we can do to fight back or stop this once and for all, anyone?

this guy named kevin jones called my job and left a message so i looked it up online and foubd all of this info  which was very helpful i never called back though

Never took out any loan and don't owe anyone any money so I know what this is A SCAM!!!

I just got the same call from this same number. Some guy with a thick Indian accent couldn't hardly understand him. tried calling back got voice mail. He said something on the lines that he was officer Mike Robinson and it was regarding something about money being owed or something.  It's a scam...

Just got a message from this number saying officer mike ..saying I did illegal activing on my email and hey would be closing my account ...I called them back and left message that I thought they was a scam ect ...and he then called me back threating me with the FBI ...I reported this number to our local police

I received a call from this number to...when I called back the man on the phone, with the same Eastern Indian Accent, who first identified himself as John Jackson, and then later said his name was Officer Sam Johnson, told me that I was going to be turned in to local law enforcement for taking out some online loan and refusing to pay them back. I have never taken out an online loan and don't deal with any loan companies. I do not know who these people are, but I have their address and have turned them in to my local District Attorney's office. THIS IS A LARGE SCAM.

Caller Identified himself as Officer Jack Anderson, very thick indian accent and talked very fast.  Said I had to call him back or would go to jail.  I did not call back.

got a call from someone with the name of mike keela or something like that he said if i didnt call him back something bad would happen to me. was hard to understand him as he wasnt smart enough to vaccum the s--- out of his mouth before calling me

Just got a call from this number. Officer something, I couldn't understand the name as he was talking with a fairly thick foreign accent. He said my name and email address have been linked to some illegal activites and my email address was shut down. I needed to call back ASAP or he wasn't sure what would happen to me. I didn't call back.

caller had a thick accent claiming to be calling from the better business bureau about  some sort of investigation.

This Jack Anderson person also called and left me a message stating I owed someone some money or something. He also had a strong eastern accent and tried to intimanate me into calling him back. Which I did   and got an answering maching. I left him a message informing him that he has broken every credit law in the united states by leaving that type of a  message on my recorder. I also told him that if he continues to harrass me then I would be the one who contacts the authorities.  I also informed him that if I owed someone money and this was a valid debt then they need to contact me via mail with documentation and proof that I owe this debt. So we'll see if, how and when they contact me again.

I received a call from this foreign person as well. OMG! These people ae crazy. You cannot understand them, they state that you owe money and they are suing you and want to know if you want to settle now before going to court. They have no reason to be calling me. If I owe someone money, then I would have received a phone call from someone in the US or a letter. They have my infomation too...how????

I recently received a call from a person by the name of Jack Edwards also. To me this appears to be a bogus collection agency. I have not received any letters from anyone saying I owe any money... Beware this is more than likely a SCAM!!!

i got a call from this number and they said that i had three criminal charges on my account and i was going to go to jail....he identified himself as officer jack anderson

Received a call claimimg as Officer Shawn Williams from United States Investigation bureau,telling ,me a prime suspect in a legal case linked to my SSN.He told me to call him back with a threat. It was so scary that almost have a heart attack and attempted to call my lawyer.Hope guys can do something about this.It's a SCAM!!!

P.S. My coworker and my cousin received the same call with the same exact words from Officer Shawn Williams.

I also received a call from "officer Shane".  He left a voicemail stating that he was calling about a legal matter connected to my name and SSN.  I was actually slightly concerned until reading the other posts but now see him for what he is...a low life scammer who can't get a real job. Don't fall for his b.s.

Called and left a message similar to those above. "Serious matter, he's an officer, call back, etc."

I thought it was serious at first but forgot to call back...called back after I checked a few sites but hung up..he called back but didn't leave a message...

Hope he loses my number

Caller left threatening message, said that my information would be downloaded to my local county and made it sound like I would be arrested.  Yeah, right.  Said that I needed to get my attorney to contact him.  Had a hard time speaking English.  I will not return his call, but will keep his recorded messages on my phone for evidence.  I don't think he can do anything  but sue me.  Cannot get "blood out of a turnip."  LOL

He is NOT an officer of any kind, and you do NOT owe him any money. He has said things in the past like "keep an eye on your kids", "I wish you the best as God's wrath causes your world to crash down upon you", numeruous profanities and threats, and said I am being watched and will be arrested. He changes his name often. After about a year and a half of being harassed, I finally called the police. The police called him, said he was doing so many illegal things that he didn't know where to start, and the guy admitted to him that he is not an officer and studdered a lot! The police said to NOT contact me again and so far he hasn't. Hopefully this is the end of it!

I received a phone call from a Jack Anderson stating that he is a federal office and that our conversation is recorded and can be held against me in court. Jack ask me my name and had my address along with my ip address stating that I owed a payday loan and has used fraudulent information to get the loan. Now I told him to file the chargers and send me the paper work in the mail he said by noon tomorrow I would have a warrant for my arrest. What I want to know is do this man has access to my SS# and can he take money from my bank account without my permission? Can he use my IP address for anything show I be worried or not?

I just called this jerk because my cousin was forced to change her number due to the harrassing phone calls and all he could say is "Who am I speaking to" do***e bag!

For at least the last four years, possibly longer, a group has been calling former payday loan applicants advising them that they have defrauded a bank and are now being sued for non-payment of a loan.  The callers will claim to be calling on behalf of an attorney's office (name varies), the Dept. of Law and Investigation, ACS, or other similar combinations below:

United Legal Processing Division
Midline Marketing
Crime Monitoring Services
Monetary Crime Division
U.S. National Bank
Attorney General?s Office (usually in California)
American Legal Services
Affidavit Consolidation Services (ACS)

You will be threatened with arrest, a costly trial and possibly worse.  In no shape, way or form can you be arrested for non-payment on a consumer debt.  Do not believe these threats, as they are without merit and cannot be carried out in the manner they allege.  

Who are they?

In the past when pressed by law enforcement for an address, the callers have provided the following information:

David Morgan and Associates
Morgan & Associates
Morgan Associates
954-727-8481
1155 Northwest 85th Street
Wintergarden, Florida  33150
(Address is likely invalid)

The collector's MO matches a once legit collections agency called Ellis Crosby & Associates.  Here are some links on them:

http://www.budhibbs.com/collectorpages/ellis_crosby_and_associates.htm
http://www.budhibbs.com/collectorpages/EllisCrosbyJudgment.pdf

They have been previously fined over $1.3 million for various violations.  They have been known to use phone banks in India to make their calls, which more or less coincides with the difficult to understand accent many of us detect when we are contacted.  

The last time this group went by any "official" name was back in 2008:

Ellis Crosby & Associates / Douglas & Morgan Associates
4494 Southside Boulevard Suite #200
Jacksonville Florida 32216
Phone:  800-928-3536 / (904) 928-3536
(Address is likely invalid)

There are NUMEROUS consumer alerts out against this group of individuals:

Florida:
http://jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/061107/met_176207561.shtml

Kansas:  
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2010/01/ks_debt_collection.html

Colorado:  
http://www.coloradoattorneygeneral.gov/press/ ... lls_likely_orig

Rhode Island:  
http://www.collectionscreditrisk.com/news/rho ... -3002135-1.html

West Virginia:
http://www.wvago.gov/internetloanscam.cfm

Missouri:
On July 15th, 2010 a Public Awareness Bulletin was sent out by Missouri Information Analysis Center.  

"..received reports from individuals in Ohio and Illinois reference suspicious telephone calls they received. In both instances, the callers are reporting that a voicemail is received from a man, with a Middle Eastern accent, identifying himself as an officer working with the Financial Crimes Unit.  The message indicates that the reason for the call concerns a loan made by the receiver or someone in the receiver's family. The voicemail requests that a return call be made and a telephone number is provided. When a return call is made, the caller is asked to provide personal identifying information such as their date of birth and social security number.

Reports indicate that the calls are frequent and persistent and that they even threaten arrest or legal action if information or money is not provided. It appears that the individuals making these calls may have access to some records connecting individuals and their relatives.  Missouri does not have a Financial Crimes Unit and all indications are that this is a fictitious agency. If you receive a similar phone call, please be advised that it is a scam and please contact your local law enforcement agency or the Missouri Information Analysis Center at 866-362-6422."

Bottom line:

Do not supply the callers with any additional information.  Inform them you have reported them to law enforcement and hang up.  If you haven't already, go ahead and report the calls to local law enforcement, your state's Attorney General and beyond.  Look up the local Secret Service branch's information in your area and get in contact with an agent there.  

If you ever applied for a cash advance online, your information is out there.  
Possible sources for the breach of your privacy are:

* The scammers obtained your information from Teletrack - a reporting agency used by many cash advance lenders to determine their risk lending to you.  The service is able to tell cash advance lenders if you have existing loans with other companies, for example.  Many state laws prohibit borrowers from having more than two cash advances out at the same time.

* The scammers created their own fake payday loan application site.  People looking for a cash advance went to the site and applied, thus freely providing the scammers with their information for malicious use at a later time.  

* The scammers were able to get into the database(s) of cash advance lenders - probable targets being Sonic Payday and Cashnet USA.  


How to protect yourself:

* Inform your employer.  You are likely getting calls at home and/or at work, so make sure your employer is aware the calls are part of a scam and to not take them seriously.  Advise the callers that they are no longer allowed to call you at work.  If they continue to call, document the date and time of the calls you received.  Save voice mails left if at all possible.  

* Change your number(s).  For some this may not be an option, for others a one-time number change can be done free of charge.

Be advised - any references you listed on your payday loan application will be contacted.  Let those people know that this is a scam, and they can disregard.

* Use Google Voice.  Google Voice is a great replacement voice mail system for just about any phone number you use.  Messages can be transcribed and voice mail recordings can be saved as mp3 files.  

Pro Tip - call the scammers with a Google Voice number before turning off your old phone numbers.  Make sure when you call you identify yourself so they can start up their script.  At any point after they have your information pulled up just hang up.  They will then start religiously calling your Google Voice number.  At this point, you are free to change your regular phone number(s) and enjoy not having these people ever call you again.  (And laugh at the fact these people are basically talking to a brick wall several times a day)

The scammers change their numbers frequently.  Law enforcement used to think it was because the callers ran out of minutes on their prepaid wireless accounts or they were shuttered due to fraud, but now they understand it's simply to evade detection by savvy consumers online.  With the proliferation of VoIP, it's even easier for the crooks to stay a couple of steps ahead of law enforcement.  Below is just a sampling of the 30+ numbers that have been used in recent memory.

1-201-244-7722
1-209-349-7382
1-209-797-2212
1-212-500-0839
1-213-256-0408
1-213-995-3039
1-281-763-0433
1-347-289-3902
1-347-844-6817
1-347-844-6831
1-424-354-4270
1-516-232-8905
1-516-232-8935
1-518-212-0219
1-561-300-8018
1-561-210-4185
1-626-200-4646
1-631-456-4041
1-646-274-1143
1-646-810-8635
1-650-241-4604
1-707-401-4056
1-707-633-2789
1-708-401-0535
1-716-442-2824
1-717-862-4080
1-718-705-8669
1-760-514-0132
1-760-563-5384
1-772-318-4938
1-850-201-1111
1-858-777-1977
1-859-908-2281
1-866-860-4509
1-877-226-7488
1-888-706-7463
1-888-771-9249
1-888-785-4479
1-909-327-4870

So can they really do anything to you?

It's not a simple yes or no answer.  Logic dictates that, if they really wanted to take you for a ride and drain your bank accounts, they already would have.  

So, why haven't they?  

Authorization.  

Why do you think you are being called so much?  Perhaps it is because they like the sound of your voice?  No, they have to have your authorization to take any form of payment from you, period.  The callers know their audience, and that audience is typically a bunch of people that have applied for payday loans in the past.  Most of those people they call couldn't afford an attorney if they wanted one, and are so used to receiving collections calls that so long as they sound like a real collector, they will likely be perceived as one.

Furthermore, they don't even really want to talk to your attorney - that just sounds official and scary enough.  A real attorney would take the callers to task and write them off as two-bit con artists.  The callers need you, in writing, to authorize payment against the fictitious debt they claim you owe.  Go ahead, ask them for proof you owe the debt - more commonly known as verification of debt.  See what they say.  A phone authorization carries very little weight, so if they have something signed by you on file, you are done for - and the callers know that.  That authorization is the only thing these callers are doing by the book, and for good reason.  If they just went all willy nilly and made an ACH debit from your checking account, without your written approval, you could in turn report the transaction as fraudulent to your financial institution.  In about 7-10 business days, you would get the funds returned to your account.  Then the scammers would be up against a bank and their team of lawyers and investigators.  

Bottom line:

If you haven't paid the callers a dime, don't.  If you planned on paying them to shut them up, just don't.  Remember - you are not being contacted by a legally licensed, ethically owned and operated collector.  Read up on the FDCPA - http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/credit/cre27.pdf - and know your rights.

http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-646-274-1143/3

Very bad accent and could hardly understand them. Said, I think, the same as above. He is an officer and has a legal matter in my interest and to call back or the file will be forwarded to "my local county".

Got a call from Jack Anderson also...debt collector that tries to fast talk ypu and scare you...tell him to submit his papers to the court that he mentioned and you will see him in court. Which he/they won't do...cost them to much money

Phone number is used by a collection agency.