It's a collection agency.

I have also been having these calls...Alfala on here has the right approach. I had these calls a while back saying I owed a loan..knew I didnt. Told them I had reported them to a law enforcement agency. I've just recently been having the calls again(today). I told him that he was being recorded and got a phone number(definitely not legit) that my lawyer would be contacting them.  We'll see if I get more calls.

Huge scam, called me at work harrasing me for something i had no idea about. they wouldnt give me the name of the CO or any info at all. But they scary thing is that they have all my info. I never applied for any money advance nothing, how they got my info? i have no idea but is 100% scam, some indian guy with the accent that i could barely understand called himself Anthony Smith, please

Got a call today from 512 377 9799-was told the same thing i had 3 criminal fraud charges agains me they said they were from Coopers Law Firm looked it up....big surprise they dont exist. They said that they were filing the paper work cause I had a loan I didnt pay, they refused to give me any info but the scarey part is they had my ss# and my address they called my job. They said I was going to loose my job all this crap.....huge scam!

Got a call two days ago telling me the whole payday loan scam returned the call and informed them I was filing complaints with the attorney general so today I get a call to call marv Branson back at 512-377-9799
it was the same people

threatning to drag me and my family to court for an unpaid loan and telling me I am going to loose my ssdi benefits etc and that my family will sue me for being drug into court was told to return the call to 909-498-4505 when I called this number just got a voicemail with no message phone call came from 661-378-9028 which is not a working number

I got another call twice today with the same number listed above.. same BS that they've had told me before and they even told me that if I do not return the call the issue at hand will go false and if I don't give them a call back they can wish me good luck, take care and God Bless.. I had spoken to them before and asked them if I have a lawsuit then send me something in writing or give me a case number that was filed against me but they cannot give me anything they just told me that I had a payday loan which I havent taken out... but these guys are so bothersome now... as the kept on calling week after week and leaving threatening messages all the time...

I first received a call from a gentleman with an Indian accent.  The caller id listed it as private name 910-778-7116.  I live in NC and my area code is 910.  There was a lot of noise in the background and I could not understand what he was saying so I eventually hung up.  This morning there were five messages on my voice mail all saying that if I or my attorney did not call the 909 number then he would wish me luck for what was about to begin happening to me.  They have called again and my husband answered the phone letting them know that they were not pronouncing the first name correctly and it was him they were looking for.  They would eventually hang up on my husband.  They have called six times in a row.  I answered the phone told them they had the wrong number and hung up.  This time a lady called and said that people were coming to drag me out of my house, I hung up again.  She called back and I told her I was coming to drag her out of her house and to watch for me she hung up.  They have called back several times and I am ignoring the calls but this is ridiculous.  I do hope this will stop.

A woman named Shawna Williams and a man named Peter Brown were calling me from this number. The two had thick Indian accents and the women kept pausing to ask the man questions about what to say.They claimed to be working for Cooper Law Firm concerning a debt with a US Cash Advance. The so called creditors told me they were downloading a lawsuit against me for fraud and would have me arrested within the hour if I did not pay them immediately. The debtors wanted me to send them a letter notarized with my debit card number and cov number on a letter allowing them to take money out of my account. THese phonies had me going until my lawyer brother told me they had called him trying to get money out of me. My brother called me to let me know he thought these people were frauds. I got a credit report to see if the debt was real or not..there was no debt associated with what they were saying. I asked for numbers and addresses of the business the creditors claimed to be representing. Cooper Law firm was real and told me they were not in any way connected to these creditors nor did anyone of those names work for them. The law firm told me that several people had called them that day claiming the same thing as I. The number these phony creditors gave me for US Cash Advance called them right back and was almost exactly the same number they were calling from(they did not answer the phone with a business name).I was informed both by googling the number and by my brother that this is most likely a fraudulent call. My bro informed me creditors cannot make such threats, especially over the phone and that I have a right to see any alleged debt against me in writing, these creditors refused to provide any proof. These scams are scary, even scarier is how much of my personal info they have...I had to change my phone # and bank number because of these con artists.

I received a call from the same number. These phony creditors had all my information; my address, my bank number,, and even my social. A woman named Shawna Williams and a man named Peter Brown kept calling and harassing. They had, what I think were, Indian accents. First, they said I owed money to a US Cash Advance and that they were calling from the legal dept of a Cooper Law Firm. Which, as it turns out is a real place. I called the law firm and they said they are NOT connected to the so called collectors but have had several people calling with the same claim as mine. I gave the law firm the con artists info and telephone #.
Still, the scammers were so intimidating on the phone, yelling at me and making threats to arrest me or file a lawsuit within the an hour if I didn't pay them. I was downright scared at first by the call and was not fully aware of my rights so I became very worried. The scary thing is I almost gave these jerks a my debit number. When they asked me to send them a notarized letter with my debit card and cov # on the paper allowing them to take funds from my bank account I became suspicious. First, I knew I didn't owe any money to any personal loan company, second I when I asked for written proof the guys response was "why should I Do that!." I decided to do some research. I googled the number and I am so glad I did. I found out that I wasn't going crazy and forgot I debt I had, this was in fact fictitious. I filed a complaint with the FTC, BBB, and made a police report. This scam artist would not stop calling me and harassing me, they called my brother too.  Luckily, who's a lawyer, told this guy he was a bunch of BS and to get lost, also informed him that we called the police and new they were frauds. I ended up having to change my phone number and bank number to be on the safe side. Also, I put a fraud alert on my credit report. If these jerks call you tell them that you know they are frauds and con artists and threaten to call the police on them. Tell them what you know about them and then hang up. Don't give or confirm any information with these guys.
My lawyer brother says:
1.YOu have a right not to be harassed by creditors
2.YOu cannot be threatened in any way by a creditor and they do not have any right to threaten litigation, arrest, subpoenas, or any other legal issue...only the court can do this and you would be officially served legal documents.
3.ask for it in writing, you are entitled to see written proof of any  debt against you, or any allegation for that matter.
4.ask for the phone numbers and addresses of every business the phony creditors say they are working for and check up on those addresses(the numbers these jerks gave me called them right back, not the businesses they were pretending to be)
5> call the actual business to see if they are imposter's(if the business actually exists) and get the phony creditors names. ask  the business if they have any information on you to make sure the debt is not real
5.get a credit report and check to make sure nothing has fraudulently been placed on your credit(these fake creditors have a scary amount of info on you) and put up a security alert.
6. call the FTC and file a complaint, file a complaint with BBB online. make a police report,

Yesterday my husband was called by these people about a payday loan he did not repay, and was going to be arrested. Next he had me call and spoke to a Shawna Williams with a really thick Indian accent. I could hardly understand her, and at first I was freaking out and thinking how I would pay this. I was more confused because we never took any loan out, and she said we had to pay it and then fight it as fraud. Come to find out criminal charges can not be made for non-payment of a loan. I almost was going to pay this untill I googled this phone number. Thank You for the heads up. It is scary how much they new about me though.

This scam has been going on for well over a year, now and has been recognized as such by the BBB:

Chicago, IL ? August 5, 2009 ? The Better Business Bureau is issuing an alert about phony debt collectors that are calling consumers nationwide and claiming that they have defaulted on a payday loan and will be arrested if they don?t pay immediately. Claiming to be lawyers, the scammers say they are with the ?Financial Accountability Association? or the ?Federal Legislation of Unsecured Loans? and are equipped with a disconcerting amount of personal information about their potential victims.

?Because the scammers have so much information about potential victims, the BBB is concerned that this may be the result of a data breach,? said Steve J. Bernas, president & CEO of the Better Business Bureau serving Chicago and Northern Illinois. ?Thousands of people may have had their personal information compromised, and given the scammers? tactics, it appears that those who have previously used payday loan services could be particularly at risk.?

According to reports received by the BBB and posted online, the scammers accuse the victim of defaulting on a payday loan and claim they are being sued. The phony debt collector threatens that, if the victim doesn?t pay as much as $1,000 immediately via wire or by providing bank account or credit card numbers, he or she will be arrested and extradited to California within the hour to stand trial. The scammers often may have the victim?s Social Security, old bank account numbers or driver?s license numbers as well as home addresses, employer information and even the names of personal friends and professional references.

The BBB offers the following advice to consumers if they receive a suspicious telephone call about an outstanding debt:
* Ask the debt collector to provide official documentation in writing which substantiates the debt.
* Do not provide or confirm any bank account, credit card or other personal information over the phone until you have confirmed the legitimacy of the call.
* Review recent copies of your credit reports to ensure that the alleged debt is not affecting your credit. Consumers can do this for free once every 12 months, and can find more information here: http://www.ftc.gov/freereports
* Under the Federal Trade Commission's Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, debt collectors may not harass, oppress, or abuse any person while attempting to collect a debt.
* A debtor may be contacted between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. only and can be contacted at work unless instructed not to.
* File a complaint with the FTC online if the caller is abusive, uses threats or otherwise violates federal telemarketing laws.
* File a complaint with BBB online at www.bbb.org if you believe a debt collector is trying to scam you.

http://www.thinkglink.com/article/2009/08/06/ ... eading-says-bbb

http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-214-618-5897

This is a very active group of scammers, many of whom are calling from India (and probably other countries) and are in cahoots with a group of American pay day loan scammers. They attempt to extort money from consumers with a myriad of false and illegal threats, and alternately pose as debt collectors, federal and state law enforcement officers, lawyers and bankers. Their trademark is to use meaningless legalese gobblygook phrases like "We are downloading warrants against you" or "We are filing an affidavit against you." Another trademark phrase is to threaten the consumer with something like this ridiculous phrase: "If you don't pay then only God can help you."

Typical of many financial scams of this variety, they usually demand payment via Western Union or MoneyGram or credit card. They use any number of phony names such as US National Bank, Federal Investigation Bureau, US Legal Investigation Bureau, Hopkins Law Office, United Legal Processing, Morgan Associates, United Pay Services, National Processing, White Collar Crime Unit and many more.  These criminals also use many phone numbers from many area codes; they're probably using caller-id spoofing software and/or VoIP to disguise their real location.

The main thing to remember is that anytime someone calls you demanding money to prevent your arrest, or demanding your lawyer's name so they can sue you, it is ALWAYS a scam. No debt collector (let alone criminals posing as debt collectors) has the authority to have anyone arrested for anything. (And it's illegal to them to threaten such a thing.) And since these foreign dirtbags routinely impersonate law enforcement, it's also important to remember that American law enforcement officers aren't in the business of debt collection.  (Debt is a civil, not a criminal, matter.)

The bottom line is, these are criminals trying to steal your money.

A consumer posting a complaint about these same scammers at http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-718-831-7157 notes that 718-831-7157 is associated with an India-based "outsourcing" telephone bank.  Though a reverse search on WhitePages.com shows that 718-831-7157 is an unlisted land line in New York City, information on Debtbuyers.Com shows that that number is used by India-based Intellisourze. (Source: http://www.debtbuyers.com/debtbuyers.asp ) My guess is that it's a VoIP phone number.

This is another piece of the puzzle that fits in perfectly with other information about this scam. There are some reports on 800Notes that have suggested that the crooks behind this offshore scam are also the crooks behind the notorious Bass/Ellis Crosby & Assoc./States Predisposition scams in Florida and Georgia. The interesting thing is that the number of complaints on here about the US National Bank/US Legal Investigation/Federal Investigation scam skyrocketed *after* April 7, 2008 when Florida obtained a $1.3 million judgment against Ted Ellis Crosby, shutdown his operations and barred him from ever conducting debt collections in Florida (Read http://myfloridalegal.com/newsrel.nsf/newsrel ... 5257424005858A6 ) There's certainly a good chance that the crooks placing these calls from India are doing so on behalf of the American crooks behind the Crosby/Bass/States Predisposition scams.

Here's the contact information for the phone bank in India:

IntellisOurzE BPO
701, Sapphier, Nr. Cargo Motors,
C.G. Road Navrangpura,
Ahmedabad - 9. (Guj.) INDIA.
E-Mail: info@intellisourze.com
Website: www.intellisourze.com

A check on the domain name "intellisourze.com" shows that the website and name registration was created on May 8, just one month *after* the Crosby scams were shut down in Florida:

Domain Name: INTELLISOURZE.COM
Registrant:  Pragra Infratech Pvt. Limited.
Email:  ankur.ranpariya@pragra.com  
908, Aksaht Tower, Nr. ICICI Bank
Opp. Rajpath Club, S.G. Highway
Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India 380054
Tel. +91.7926871353
Creation Date: 08-May-2008
Expiration Date: 08-May-2009
Domain servers in listed order: ns5.znetindia.com ns4.znetindia.com
(Source: http://whois.domaintools.com/intellisourze.com )

Though scam calls from these crooks have been going on long before May 8, the frequency of complaints about these calls increased considerably after Crosby was shut down in early April.

This is conjecture, but appearances suggest that Crosby and company were originally running a two-pronged payday loan scam operation -- with some calls being made from Jacksonville, Florida and other calls being made from a phone bank in India (and possibly other countries); then, after the Florida Attorney General shut down the Crosby scams in Florida, the Crosby crooks transferred most of their scam efforts to the India phone bank.

If you are targeted by these criminals, be sure to report them to all the following federal and state law enforcement agencies (most of which you can do online or over the phone):

1) Alert the FBI at https://tips.fbi.gov  Be sure to tell the FBI that you are being targeted by extortionists over the phone. And if the crooks claim to be law enforcement, lawyers, officers of the court or bankers, or if they threatened you with arrest, be sure to include that information in your report.

2) File a complaint online with The Federal Trade Commission at https://www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov/FTC_Wizard.aspx?Lang=en

3) File a complaint with your local police. Most police departments will take a report over the phone.  Be sure to tell them that you're being targeted by an extortionist and give them all the details.

4) The caller placed the call under a Texas area code. Even though the caller ID was probably spoofed or they're using VoIP technology to hide the fact that they're really calling from overseas, you should also file a complaint with the Texas Attorney General at http://www.oag.state.tx.us/consumer/complain.shtml

5) File a complaint your state's attorney general, the contact information for whom is at www.naag.org

6) The U.S. Secret Service is responsible for protecting the country's financial infrastructure and payment systems from international and domestic threats. Call or write your local Secret Service field office to alert them to the details of this attempted extortion. The addresses and phone numbers for the local Secret Service field offices are listed at http://www.secretservice.gov/field_offices.shtml or in your phone book.

If these crooks call back, promise them nothing, pay them nothing and tell them nothing other than that you know they're a scam and that you've reported them to law enforcement. (And be sure to report them to all the agencies above each time they call you.)

By the way, here's just a small sample of numbers used by this particular group of scammers. Read the reports and you'll see the same pattern time and again -- phony organization names, thick foreign accents, and oddly worded threats that are so melodramatic and ridiculous that it's laughable:

http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-925-262-1327
http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-678-954-6346
http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-888-341-4004
http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-856-831-0640
http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-949-743-1140
http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-410-505-8128
http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-917-464-2534
http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-210-858-6602
http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-888-775-2121
http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-949-743-1156
http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-214-245-1402
http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-214-245-0922
http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-214-723-5572
http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-904-425-2863
http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-718-831-7157
http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-904-425-2857
http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-858-244-0444
http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-954-678-9724
http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-610-571-3252
http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-310-909-8245

...and, many, MANY more.

He just called me 5 min ago for the 3rd time today...Do not talk to these people...they will not stop harrassing you.

They have been calling me for month now from all different numbers, they call me at work and repeatedly on my cell phone...They wont stop. I have reported them to different agancies...Told them to stop even had my employer tell them to stop. They do not. Looks like a number change may be in order. If anyone has found a way to stop them I would like to know.

Got a call yesterday threatening me to get my lawyer and that I will be losing my job. The guy spoke really bad english and called himself James Anderson (yeah right). The bad thing is that he had my SSN information.  I've had fraud before so I'll probably have these A-Holes calling and harrassing me.  Any suggestions?

got a strange call from this number asking me to give them a call back from a guy named James Anderson and he mentioned that it is of urgent matter and if I dont give a call back then he wishes me good luck and take care!!! called that number back and the phone was off!! It was a very obvious spam phone number