A Georgia man who prosecutors say organized a scheme that victimized more than 6,000 consumers nationwide is set to go to trial. Prosecutors say John Williams spearheaded efforts to defraud at-risk consumers from 2009 to 2014 into paying approximately $4.1 million by misrepresenting the status of their debts and consequences of not paying. John Williams’ debt collection agency Williams, Scott & Associates LLC was shut down in 2014.
The trial comes when there is a time of heightened regulatory attention toward debt collection, which the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) considers the No. 1 most-complained about area of consumer financial services.
Debt collection firms, like the one in this case, purchase delinquent debts, oftentimes for pennies on the dollar, then attempt to collect the full amount the original lender claimed. These firms claim they are simply seeking recovery on a rightfully-owed debt. However, regulators say many of these firms engage in abusive tactics while targeting financially-struggling individuals.
Prosecutors at Williams, Scott & Associates contacted consumers and falsely referred to themselves as “detective” or “investigator,” claimed to be tied to government agencies and even threatened arrest.
Scripts employees read on the calls included legal-sounding language, like the “statute of limitations” on the consumers’ “civil legal rights” had expired, according to prosecutors. The six employees arrested with Williams have pleaded guilty. Williams has pleaded not guilty to the charge of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. He has been held without bail since his arrest and faces up to 20 years in prison.
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