i recieved a call from this number today. I answered it because it came up on caller id as 000-000-0000 and i didnt think anything of it.  I did not catch the first guys name, then he said he would transfer the call and then I was talking to a guy named Lance Martin.  He had a very heavy middle eastern accent so he was very hard to understand.  He stated that I would be prosucuted in a california court for a payday loan. It took me three times before he finally gave me the name of the company that is supposedly filing a suit against me, The name of the company he said was Fast Cash International, I have never heard of them. He scared me because he had all my inforamtion and my mothers name and my friends name and when he asked me who they were I told him tha was none of his buisness.  He then scared me again when he said he was going to prosecute them also.  I talked to a attorney friend of mine and he told me to ignore the calls.  It scares me that he has all my information.  I do have a loan out but it is up to date.  I am scared, but also how can I go to a court in Calfornia, when I dont even live in california?

A man called my wife this morning and told her she had was going to be arrested and prosecuted if she did not pay $700-odd dollars *today* to settle an overdue payday loan. He could not tell her the name of the lender she owed money to, instead saying it could be one of over 500 companies his law office represents. Gee, that's strange. He did give her instructions on getting a notarized letter stating she wanted to settle the case today. He told her to fax the letter to (877) 283-6987; 877, for those who didn't pick up on it, is a toll-free area code, so in effect it's like telling someone to fax something to an 800 number. Anyway, he then told her that after she gets the letter, she should call (760) 283-6987 and make her payment, which could only be accepted by credit card. Uh-huh. Curiously "Michael Davis" did not give my wife a case number, claim number, or account number. Yes, ma'am, please just give us that credit card number so we don't have to arrest you and drag you to California to stand trial. My wife said she hadn't received any correspondence about the debt, to which, of course, the guy replied that his firm had made numerous attempts to email her. I called the the number he provided, and someone answered on the third ring, but didn't say anything. We just sort of listened to each other for a minute before he hung up. The second time I called he said his name was Stephen Jones (he sounded like his name ought to be Ravij Shankar), and that he worked in a law office. I asked him why he was calling pregnant ladies on a Saturday morning to threaten them. He said, "I don't understand Saturday ladies." Stephen/Michael/Ravij, if you're reading this, you had my wife sobbing and crying, and if you ever call us again, I'm going to slit your belly open, pull out a length of your guts, nail it to a tree, and then make you walk circles around the tree until you die. I will leave you for the crows.

Oh yeah, and on the voicemail the guy left the day before, he said he worked for a government office.

And at one point they asked her if she had ever been involved in money laundering before.

Phony Debt Collector Scam Alert Issued by BBB

Last month, The Better Business Bureau (BBB) issued a national alert warning consumers to beware of phony debt collectors who contact you claiming to be lawyers with intent to sue. The scammers call your home,  and according to the BBB they are armed with the potential victim’s personal information, including  Social Security Numbers, old bank information, driver’s license numbers,  home addresses and even the names of personal friends. They claim to be lawyers with the “Financial Accountability Association” or the “Federal Legislation of Unsecured Loans” and they are telling potential victims to pay $1,000 immediately via bank wire or credit card, or they will be arrested and be extradited to California to stand trial within the hour.

The selection of potential victims seems to be connected to individuals who have taken out a payday loan in the past, which is a  high-interest short-term cash advance intended to cover expenses until the holder’s next payday. According to the Better Business Bureau, thousands of people who have used payday loan services may have had their personal information compromised as a result of a data breach.

We here at Creditinfocenter have certainly made our voices clear about how we feel regarding the services of payday lending companies, so this news feels a little like karma rearing its ugly head. As if another reason was needed to discourage the use of payday loans — well, here it is, although a data breach can (and does) occur at almost any type of financial service company.

The scammers have been reportedly calling from a variety of phone numbers including the following numbers:  (949) 468-5107, (415) 200-0274, (415) 200-0274, (213) 784-5745 and (408) 715-1614. If you get a suspicious call from an individual claiming to be attempting to collect on an outstanding debt, the BBB provides the following advice:

Ask the debt collector to provide official documentation which substantiates the debt.

Do not provide or confirm any bank account, credit card or other personal information over the phone until you have confirmed the legitimacy of the call.

File a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission online if the caller is abusive, uses threats or otherwise violates federal telemarketing laws.

File a complaint with BBB online if you believe a debt collector is trying to scam you.

If you believe a debt collector is trying to scam you, file an abuse complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) online at www. ftc.gov, or by telephone at A(202)326-2222 You may also file a complaint with your Better Business Bureau at http://www.bbb.org/ or by telephone at 203-269-2700, extension 2.

http://www.creditinfocenter.com/wordpress/200 ... -issued-by-bbb/

To Jill, Miss, and JR. i JUST RECEIVED THAT SAME CALL WITH THE CALLER ASKING ME TO DO ALL THE SAME THING YOU ALL HAVE STATED. hE [***] HAD ME CRYNG TALKING ABOUT I AM GOING TO GET AREESTED IN I DON'T COME TO CAL., HE ALSO SAID THAT I NEED TO GIVE HIM MY CREDIT CARD NUM TO DAY FOR A PAY DAY LOAN IN THE AMOUNT OF $849, AND ONCE I STARTED TO ASK QUESTION HE SAID THT I WAS DOUBTING THE COMPANY AND I WILL GET PUT BEHIND BARS SINCE I DONT HAVE THE MONET TO GET TO CAL.

HE GAME ME THE NAME OF THE LAW OFFICE OF LAWRENCE WOLF, SO I LOOKED THEM UP ONLINE AND CHECK OUT THE FAX NUMER AND [***] JUST DIDNT ADD UP. I AM GOING TO CALL THE REAL LAW OFFICE AND LET THEM KNOW WHAT IS GOING ON.

THE [***] ALSO CALLED ME FROM A 000-000-000, AND THE A 202-481-3310 NUMBER SINCE I LIVE IN DC BUT THE NUMBER DONT WORK.

Anyone with a few dollars can find out your whole life history through Intelius. Don't let it scare you. Buy a two-way tape recorder and record his next call, then tell him you have his voice for the FBI. He'll wet his pants.