678-954-0520

I got a call from these people on Jan 23, 2008. They didn't tell me who they were; they called me at work and stated that they were getting ready to serve legal paper on me at my place of employment or at my home. They asked me to give them my attorney information.

Don't fall for this scam. This is a group of criminals that was originally based in Florida and, after the Florida attorney general began pursuing them, fled for Georgia.  Like many criminals, they go by various names: Bass & Associates/United Legal Investigations Bureau/United Federal Bank/Impact Business Marketing/Ellis Crosby & Associates/States Predisposition Services/Jackson Phillips & Associates and many others.

Though their aliases vary, their method never does. Masquerading as bankers, debt collectors, police, or other government officials, these crooks call consumers and attempt to extort money with a myriad of illegal false threats. These threats are always phony and include arresting you, ruining your credit rating, serving you "papers" for a lawsuit and, yes, taking your children away from you.  In one recent phone call to a consumer, these crooks even pretended to be on a walkie talkie coordinating a police raid of the consumer's home.  Granted, this stuff is laughably ridiculous, but, sadly, some people fall for it.

Fortunately, law enforcement authorities and the press have taken notice of these crooks. Check out this recent article from the Florida Times-Union: http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/120107/met_221875639.shtml

And these links explain more about this criminal operation:
http://forums.treemedia.com/fb/showpost.php?s ... 75&postcount=90
http://www.budhibbs.com/debtcollectorpages/ellis_crosby_and_associates.htm

There are a lot of 800Notes reports on the many phone numbers these bandits use. This one is typical: https://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-800-918-3844/2

Since they've already made an illegal threat against you, I suggest you do all the following:

1) Give them nothing. And tell them nothing other than to "cease all communication" with you.

2) Report all your information to the Federal Trade Commission here: https://rn.ftc.gov/pls/dod/wsolcq$.startup?Z_ORG_CODE=PU01

3) Report all the same information to Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum at http://myfloridalegal.com/contact.nsf/contact?Open&Section=Attorney_General

4) Report all the same information to the Georgia Governor's Office of Consumer Affairs at http://consumer.georgia.gov/00/channel_modifi ... 5687815,00.html

4) Contact an attorney to defend your rights and pursue these crooks. There are plenty of consumer law attorneys who work on contingency in matters like this. Here are links to websites that either provide attorney referrals or are law firms that specialize in suing outlaw debt collectors:

Consumer Advocate Bud Hibbs - http://www.budhibbs.com/First.htm
National Association of Consumer Advocates - http://members.naca.net/findanattorney.php
Warren & Vullings, LLP - http://www.fairdebtlawyers.com/
My Fair Debt - http://www.myfairdebt.com/
Consumer Counsel Group - http://www.consumercounselgroup.com/

If someone attempted to break into your home to steal your belongings, you would probably contact law enforcement. This case is no different. Don't let these criminals at United Federal Bank/Bass/Jackson Phillips/States Predisposition victimize you. Contact the authorities and help put this crime syndicate out of business. Good luck.

They called and said that I took out a payday loan and I owed 900.00, if I did not pay it they were going to press charges and someone was going to pick me up.

they called me this morning and said i had a payday loan which i owed $462.00.  if i did not pay or did not anything about it then legal matters would be taken.  also if i did not returned the call they were going to download the matter tonight at about 10:30pm and my credit was going to be ruined.

they called me this morning and said i had a payday loan which i owed $462.00.  if i did not pay or did not anything about it then legal matters would be taken.  also if i did not returned the call they were going to download the matter tonight at about 10:30pm and my credit was going to be ruined.

I got a call this morning from Dept of Finance Crime Divisions and they said I owe a pay day loan $462.00.  If I settle out of court, I will pay $1700.00 or if not then the costs with legal matters and so forth will be $2750.00.  They have been calling me constantly and stating that if i do not take care of the matter, things will be worse for me.  I tried to get proof in writing but they said when i send in the payment then it will be my reference and proof of payment.

Dept of Finance Crimes Division?? LOL!  These criminals aren't even good at choosing a phony name.

Just ignore their calls and refer to the message that I posted above for advice on reporting their illegal activities to law enforcement.

yeah they called me this morning.  and said if i do not resolve the matter today then it is out of their hands to go forward with legal matters.  i asked for proof of written documentation but they could not provide me with that.  i asked how can i send money if i do not have written proof.  they said it was written in the terms of the loan and once i make payment that would be my reference for the matter resolved.  they keep calling and leaving me voicemails.  what else can i do.  i filed a complaint in the do not call registry.

thank you for your response.  that is what they say their name was or something like that. they keep calling and leaving messages about why i do not return their call.  now they mention about a payment arrangement but still have not answered my question about sending documentation of that outstanding loan.  i am ignoring their calls.

what happened after that?  did they continue to call you or just left you alone after that call.  they called me this morning and keep calling me & leaving voicemails.  i asked for proof of documentation but could not give it.

they have called me again and left voicemails.  they say that if i do not call them back they will download my file and an attorney should be assigned to me.  i am getting sick of these people calling.

I have been getting these calls for about 3 weeks now from kevin anderson, micheal benhaven and an assortment of other hard to understand people.  They give me no info and said they do not have to follow the fair debt collections act because they are not a collection agency.  They keep threatening to bring the law into this. Has anyone who has been getting these calls had anything happen as a result.  I am on probation so it kinda worries me but I wont pay them till i get something in writing validating my debt.  Does anyone have any more info on these people??

Scroll up in this message thread to my post from Jan. 23; that's all the information about these crooks. Just remember: no debt collector has the authority to have anyone arrested for anything, and it's illegal for them to threaten otherwise. Debt is a civil matter, not a criminal matter. Besides, the only criminals here are the people who called you. Refer to my message above for information on reporting them to the proper authorities. Hope this helps.

ec,
Thanks for your info.  I saw what you posted before i wrote my little story.  I just dont want to be wrong.  Where did you get your info from?  Like I said being on probation is the only thing that concerns me.  Is there anyway to get them to stop calling me?

yes i have as well.  i started getting them two days ago from the same person kevin anderson.  they said the same thing to me on the voicemails.  i tried asking for proof in writing but could not get it out of them.  it worries me too.  it is a scary thing to hear from someone you never know or heard of.

If you read the Federal Debt Collection Practices Act, you'll see that debt collectors are prohibited from making false threats. The most common false threats are claiming you'll be arrested if you don't pay a debt or that you'll be sued when they have no intention of suing you.

The problem here, however, is that these are not legitimate debt collectors who are calling you. They are con artists running a grift. They don't care about debt collection laws. For example, check out this link to another phone number this same group of crooks uses: https://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-210-858-6603/2  And scroll down to the message posted by "You Will Be Stopped". His message demonstrates that even if a total stranger calls these crooks out of the blue, the crooks will insist that the caller will be arrested if they don't pay, via Western Union, a certain amount of money.

So take comfort in the fact that nothing they say or threaten will affect your probation. And remember: just because someone calls on the phone doesn't mean they're legitimate. These people are no different than a pickpocket on the street.

As for stopping the calls, that's a tough one. If they were a legitimate, law-abiding debt collector, you can send them a certified letter directing them to cease all communication with you. But since these bums aren't in the business of abiding by the law, I seriously doubt that they would pay any heed to your letter. At this point, I would report them to the various government agencies that I've listed above.  If they call again, tell them that you are aware that they are a scam and that they are not to call you again and that you've reported their activities to the police, the attorney general and the Federal Trade Commission.  That might stop the calls.

By the way, I've read other reports that some of these calls are being made offshore and routed through American area codes. So remember that the area code doesn't always reflect the origin of the call.

Good luck.

my husband reveive a call form these peoplestating that they where from the United Federal Bank.  we paid them 400.00 before i got smart and started researching them.  They have us set up on a pay arrangement.  They told my husband he had an outstannding loan and they had agents on the way to his job to get him that why i paid the 400. THank You to all of you for the information posted here.  I WILL NOT be giving them anymore money.  THe gentlemen that called us names was Jerry.

Tina, good job! If these criminals give you and your husband any guff over stopping payments, just remind them that contracts made under duress are not valid. Then tell them that in lieu of payment, you will be reporting them to federal and state authorities.  My guess is, the calls will then stop.

Here's how to to help law enforcement shut these crooks down (some of these things you can do online and only take a few minutes):

1) File a complaint online with the Federal Trade Commission at https://rn.ftc.gov/pls/dod/wsolcq$.startup?Z_ORG_CODE=PU01

2) File a complaint with your state's attorney general. The contact information for each state's attorney general is at www.naag.org  Just scroll down to the national map graphic and click on your state.

3) File a complaint with your local police.

4) File a complaint with the FBI at http://tips.fbi.gov

5) File a complaint with the Georgia Governor's Office of Consumer Affairs at http://consumer.georgia.gov/00/channel_modifi ... 5687815,00.html

Hope this helps. Good luck.

"Dept of Finance Crimes Division?? LOL!  These criminals aren't even good at choosing a phony name."

ec, it is going to be VERY interesting to find out just HOW many aliases they have used, when they are finally brought to trial!

Everyone my calls started on the February 5th at my place of employment.  This guy with an accent named Richard Hamilton call and said that he was from United Federal Bank and I had an outstanding loan from 2005 which I did not have.  So I told them that I would call on my lunch break and when I called he told me his stimulation and that I needed to get an attorney.  And I advised him not to call my job and I gave him my cell number.  When I got off he called again like the conversation that we had earlier he forgot.  He could not give me any information about how to send the money to a business address.  He told me that I need to do moneygram.  At first he said it was 390 and when I told him I could only pay 100 he said the amount was 1100 because interest and collection fees.  So I told him that I was going to talk to my attorney.  So he called and threaten me so I forward the calls from my cell phone to my attorney.  So she called and told them that was harrassment.  So I guess I was too smart for him and he called me again and told me that I did not need an attorney that he only wanted to talk to me but at first he told me that I needed an attorney.  By the end of the week after I called the FBI and Financial Institution  to see whether the bank existed.  It was all a scam.  But I called this number back to check it out and it's now not a working number.  

Now we all know how to take it all in our hands for now on!!!