Agency: Federal Trade Commission (FTC)Washington
Description:
On May 17, 2017, at the request of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the State of Florida, a federal court issued a Preliminary Injunction Order against Jeremy Lee Marcus, Craig Davis Smith, Yisbet Segrea and a multitude of corporate defendants that the individuals used to defraud millions of dollars from consumers. The Agencies allege the massive phony debt relief operation preyed on financially strapped consumers, including the elderly and disabled. Marcus, Smith, Segrea and their companies are charged with violating the FTC Act, the FTC’s Telemarketing Sales Rule, and the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act.
According to a Complaint for Permanent Injunction and Other Equitable Relief filed by the FTC and Florida, Jeremy Lee Marcus, Craig Davis Smith and Yisbet Segrea, through 11 companies, got people to pay hundreds or thousands of dollars a month by falsely promising they would pay, settle, or obtain dismissals of consumers’ debts and improve their credit. Their debts were unpaid, their accounts in default, and their credit scores severely damaged. Some were sued by their creditors, and some were forced into bankruptcy.
According to complaint allegations the defendants falsely claimed non-profit status to appear more credible and legitimate. They then promised consumers guaranteed debt consolidation loans for tens of thousands of dollars with attractive interest rates and significantly lower monthly payments than consumers were paying their creditors. Once consumers agreed to the purported loan, the companies debited the consumers’ bank accounts for an initial loan “repayment” or a processing fee, and then kept debiting consumers’ bank accounts each month, in amounts ranging from $200 to $1,000 or more. Despite taking these monthly payments, they failed to provide the promised debt consolidation loans.
In addition, they also called people who were already enrolled with debt relief providers claiming they were taking over the servicing of those accounts and falsely claiming they would provide the same or similar services. Many of their victims had worked for years with their previous debt relief providers and had saved money in escrow accounts for use in negotiating with creditors. They instructed consumers to transfer their escrow money to them, and then debited up to $1,000 each month from the consumers’ bank accounts. Consumers got little to nothing for their money and ended up in worse financial positions.
The case is pending and will be decided by the court.
Information regarding the complaint can be found here.
Date of Action: 5/8/2017