Got a call from this number on 1/23/08 12:09pm EST. It's a guy with a drunken voice asking whether I was lonely. Did they change the harrasing strategy? Or maybe the rude woman is not home so the husband picked up the phone and started to make stupid phone calls....
April 7, 2008: "Attorney General Obtains $1.3 Million Judgment Against Jacksonville Debt Collector" http://myfloridalegal.com/newsrel.nsf/newsrel ... 5257424005858A6
Bud Hibbs maintains that there's a connection between Ted Ellis Crosby's collection scam and Evelyn and Frank Jackson's Bass Prelitigation/States Predisposition scams (see http://budhibbs.com/debtcollectorpages/ellis_crosby_and_associates.htm) So it's interesting that reports posted on 800Notes about phone numbers associated with the States Predisposition scam are suddenly few and far between since this April 7 announcement of the $1.3 million judgment against Crosby in Florida.
Coincidence?
Here's the text of the Florida Attorney General's news release:
>>Attorney General Bill McCollum News Release
April 7, 2008
Attorney General Obtains $1.3 Million Judgment Against Jacksonville Debt Collector
TALLAHASSEE, FL – Attorney General Bill McCollum today announced that a Jacksonville resident and his debt collection agency have been ordered to pay $1.3 million in restitution and civil penalties for violations of Florida and Federal collections laws. Ted Ellis Crosby, individually and in his capacity as owner and director of Ellis Crosby & Associates, was found to have engaged in willful violations of Florida’s Deceptive and Unfair Business Practices Act and Florida’s Consumer Collections Practices Act. The case was litigated by the Attorney General’s Economic Crimes division.
“This case should put similar operations on notice that the penalties for such deceptive business practices can be very costly,” said Attorney General McCollum. “Florida authorities will not tolerate unscrupulous individuals who victimize our citizens in potentially difficult financial situations.”
The Attorney General’s lawsuit, filed in June August 2005, alleged that Crosby and his company used deceptive practices in an attempt to scare, harass and intimidate debtors into paying amounts far in excess of their debts. Testimony from victims and witnesses revealed that Crosby and company used tactics such as posing as law enforcement officers, threatening seizure of property, and even threatening bodily harm. More than 380 victims filed complaints with the Attorney General’s office.
Duval Circuit Court Judge L. Haldane Taylor ordered Crosby and his company to pay $388,000 in consumer restitution, $700,000 in fines for violating the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Business Practices Act, and $253,000 in fees and costs, totaling more than $1.3 million. The Judge also entered a permanent injunction which prohibits Crosby and his company from engaging in any activity within the State of Florida which is related in any way to the ownership, processing, administration or collection of consumer debts.
More information about protecting yourself from improper debt collection tactics is available online at: http://myfloridalegal.com/pages.nsf/main/7cd1 ... d6!OpenDocument
A copy of the judgment against Crosby is available online at: http://myfloridalegal.com/webfiles.nsf/WF/KGR ... sbyJudgment.pdf. <<
The Florida Attorney General also maintains that Bass Prelitigation (which is the same group of crooks behind States Predisposition) is just one of many fronts used by Ted Ellis Crosby's debt collection scam. Here's an excerpt from a Florida Times-Union article last year:
"But the state's lawsuit against Ellis Crosby & Associates does contend a link between Ted Ellis Crosby and Bass Prelitigation, the latest subject of an investigation. In a motion filed in November, the state contended Crosby was involved in debt collection by using 'aliases, fronts of strawman operations such as Bass Prelitigation.' Broward County resident Joanna Cook made a similar allegation in a lawsuit she filed in February against Bass Prelitigation. Cook contended former employees of Ellis Crosby & Associates formed Bass Prelitigation last year and worked with Ted Ellis Crosby to develop a business plan for the company. Her lawsuit contends Bass Prelitigation was organized to sidestep the attorney general's lawsuit against Ellis Crosby. Cook's lawsuit said an employee of Bass Prelitigation called and said she faced immediate arrest if she didn't pay $999 that same day by MoneyGram for a payday loan. She said she became frantic because she feared being separated from her two children, including a newborn. David Jacobs, office manager for Bass Prelitigation, declined to comment on the specific allegations and the attorney general's legal filings. But he said Bass Prelitigation does not threaten consumers with arrest or have any association with Ted Ellis Crosby. 'I will tell you, categorically, we have no connection with him whatsoever,' Jacobs said. He said Ellis Crosby & Associates put a 'horrible stigma' on debt collectors and 'is an example of what not to do.' He said Bass Prelitigation will be installing a telephone recording system so it will have records of what employees say in their calls. Ellis Crosby & Associates was founded in 2003, four years after Ted Ellis Crosby was court-martialed by the Navy in Jacksonville, according to court documents." [Source: http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/061107/met_176207561.shtml]
Something tells me that Bass Prelitigation/States Predisposition never got around to installing that telephone recording device.
It's certainly starting look like the directors of Bass Prelitigation/States Predisposition -- Evelyn & Frank Jackson -- are just Ted Ellis Crosby's stooges. Perhaps the Jacksons have scrammed and grown quiet for now, but until the state of Florida obtains a similar judgment against them and Bass Prelitigation/States Predisposition, you can bet that these cockroaches will regroup and eventually resume their debt collection scams.
They have continued to call me and leave me messages to return the calls. I have not. I am filing bankruptcy and they are going to be included. I was told by my attorney to just ignore their calls.
Rcvd a call at work from a guy who identified himself as a Senior Litigator by name name of Mr. Montgomery. I laughed thinking that he sounded like an minimum wage telemarketer who is trying to command respect by addressing himself as "Mr". He asked for the last four digits of the social, which I would not give. He then stated that I owed money for a loan that was not paid in full. Between the loan company and these folks, this is such a dishonest way of doing business. I informed him that I had bank records showing several drafts from my account to pay this loan and I have already paid back the sum of the loan. I offered to fax copies of these records to him for review. He then stated that I was unwilling to cooperate.... What??? I just offered to fax him documents showing the payments made to this account. Bottom line, they are collectors, they will try to intimidate you. He threw some terms out there that accused me of being malicious, sneaky and some additional outrageous and ludacris adjectives. I ended up having to hang up, because I was getting nowhere with this guy in trying to resolve this situation. I guess if they do not see a chance to further collect money from you, they resort to insults and try to intimidate you. They showed no interest in receiving the documents that i offered to send them.
These guys were featured on 60 Minutes. They got their information by hacking into Internet sites, and they threaten lawsuits against the last 4 digits of your Social Security Number. They speak with an Indian accent, and they claim you will face "harsh legal action" unless you send them between $500 and $1,000. They are total idiots because their name does not even make sense: United Investigation Bureau Department.
They use names like Roger Smith and Jack Jones, but their real names are probably something like Mahamanda Yogananda. They can barely speak English.
They use various call back numbers including 347-844-6701 and 718-766-7916.
The best idea so far was what Paybackisabeatch suggested. Turn the tables on them. Call them back, ask for Habib, waste their time so that they cannot make money with scam calls to extort money from honest people who may get frightened or confused.