harrassment
Complaint
Monica
Country: United States
Just received a call from "Jason Craig" (yea right) saying that I was a named person in a lawsuit that would be filed in my county tomorrow morning and that I need to have $70,000 to $80,000 ready or I'm going to jail.
The idiot could barely speak English and I could hear other people in the background screaming at what I can only guess were other people on the phone trying to get them to pay.
I don't owe a payday loan and I've never gotten a payday loan.
I have filed a complaint with the FTC.
The idiot could barely speak English and I could hear other people in the background screaming at what I can only guess were other people on the phone trying to get them to pay.
I don't owe a payday loan and I've never gotten a payday loan.
I have filed a complaint with the FTC.
Comments
"Just received a call from "Jason Craig" (yea right)"
They are generally reported to use names they think sound "American", even though they are not credible due to their poor English and thick accents. This appears to be an attempt to appear to be a U.S. based "debt collector", since if their victims realize they are calling from India, it ruins the effect.
"saying that I was a named person in a lawsuit that would be filed in my county tomorrow morning and that I need to have $70,000 to $80,000 ready or I'm going to jail."
They are liars. Rather absurd that they would expect someone they claim to have taken out a payday loan would have $80,000 in pocket change, but as you said, he's an idiot.
"I could hear other people in the background screaming at what I can only guess were other people on the phone trying to get them to pay. "
Other recent complaints have reported hearing similar "collection scam" telemarketers in the background. It appears that these criminal operations are being run as "businesses", just like telemarketing, with employees, call centers, supervisors, etc.
"I don't owe a payday loan and I've never gotten a payday loan."
Although some complaints report they may have gotten id information from phony "payday loan" websites, others report details consistent with randomly targeting U.S. consumers who have never applied for payday loans. Some of these report they have information such as SSN, addresses and bank account numbers (sometimes out of date), employers, etc., indicating they may be getting access to U.S. credit reports and skip-trace services.
File a complaint with the FBI, and if they keep calling, record them and tell them the call is being recorded as evidence. If they have any brains, they will move on when they know you won't be conned.
Several state Attorneys General have released warnings on these scams. For example:
http://www.illinoisattorneygeneral.gov/pressroom/2010_08/20100825.html
They are probably running this scam from overseas, which makes suing them impractical.
They are, however, vulnerable at two points:
1) Their phone provider. They may be using VoIP, but most likely use the same carrier even though they may change phone numbers frequently.
2) Their method of getting the money transferred.
If the scam got that far, how did they say payment should be sent?
Western Union?
MoneyGram?
Prepaid debit card from Walmart?
Credit card or checking account number?
Other?
We need to find a way to shut them down.
Many of these scams get their victims to send them money using Western Union and Moneygram, which makes the money trail virtually untraceable. They either avoid credit card or EFT payment processors to avoid leaving a trail and the risk of having the charges reversed, or they can't get access to them.
File fraud complaints with FTC, and demand that Western Union and Moneygram prominently post warnings against these phony "debt collector" extortion rackets. Currently they post warnings against much gentler scams, but not a mention of these thugs threatening people with arrest and prosecution, pretending to be "investigators" or "attorneys". Moneygram even agreed in a recent settlement to warn consumers of fraud, but they have no warning of this one.
File a complaint with the FBI.
It may be possible to shut down their access to transferring money overseas.
Did he say how he wanted you to send him money?
If he calls back, play along a little and ask him.
But the common factors stay the same: callers have Indian accents, are probably calling from overseas, probably India, they make illegal threats, and the "debts" are fake.
Some complaints report hearing voices in the background shouting the same scripts. Some of these scams may be run from Indian call centers.