DO NOT give this person anything. My daughter contacted the company he said he was collecting for and they said they didn’t know him and he did not work for them. They said not to give him any information and absolutely no money. She also contacted the Attorney General who connected her to the local consumer protection agency and they said it is definitely a scam. They also said we would likely not hear from him again.
I received a phone call today stating that my son owed money and a deposition warrant would be issued by 4pm EST. He would be charged with bank fraud (b misdemeanor), defrauding a financial institution (felony) and passing bad checks across state lines (felony and federal offense). I passed the call to my son who had taken a loan with Plain Green, so he assumed the call was legitimate but was confused as to why that would warrant these charges. My husband and I paid this debt ($722.23). Ten minutes later I started googling the company and phone number and found this blog and several others. I phoned the bank, local FBI field office and the local police. I also called Christopher Watkins Associates and informed them that I involved the authorities and good night. He called me back and stated that $722.23 was not worth getting investigated by the FBI and I concurred. He threatened that my son would be arrested but stated that he would refund my money. I'm going to get my money back from the bank, but I want him to go to jail. Beware...Don't give any money over the phone...Get a verification notice mailed to your home; it should specify the amount, debtor and contact information for the collector. Here's the information I have for this so-called law office: 312-520-8037...PO Box 607 Chicago, IL 60009. He would not provide a street address, but he seemed very concerned about being investigated by the law.
I just received a phone call from a Christopher Watkins with "The Criminal Investigations Unit" (312-520-8037). He informed me that I owed $900+ and he would have me arrested at 9:00 PM if I did not pay the money owed (he called at 8:00 PM). He claimed I would be charged with felony charges as well as a few misdemeanors (bouncing checks across state lines, etc). This was supposedly over a debt with Plain Green....a debt that I paid in full in 2012. I contacted our local sheriff's department, and was informed that this was likely a scam and that if there were a warrant for my arrest, I would not be able to "pay it off" as Mr. Watkins requested. I also contacted my attorney, who agreed this was likely a scam. I have filed a report with the local sheriff's office and hopefully we can put a stop to this scam.