harassedtodeath Posted September 9, 2008 Report Share Posted September 9, 2008 I am being harassed by Tom Landis Esq, PA. I have received numerous calls threatening jail time, loss of my property, and have now received a letter stating if I do not reply to it within 30 days, it will revalidate the debt. The OC is out of business, no longer exists. The debt was charged off several years ago and is out of Statute of Limitations since 2003.The lady who called cursed me, started reading me what she referred to as a court docket number, stated I was facing fraud charges, jail time, unless I would admit to her this was my debt. I asked who the original OC was and written proof of orginal amount of debt. She stated I was not entitled to this information. I told her I was not going to speak with her anymore. She demanded I go immediately to a Western Union and pay the debt and no charges would be pressed. When I responded she was in violation of laws for making such threats, the phone clicked and she got nice and said, 'by law, I must inform you this is an attempt to collect a debt. So you are admitting you owe this money?" I stated I was not admitting to anything and to not call back.What do I do? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stefdr Posted September 9, 2008 Report Share Posted September 9, 2008 You did the right thing by not admitting to the debt, before you answer another call from this bozo, get a tape recorder and start recording the calls. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flacorps Posted September 9, 2008 Report Share Posted September 9, 2008 You need to check out your local court's plaintiff/defendant index ... strike that, you need to check anywhere this fool might have filed a case (they'll have a county they particularly like). Also check your CRA reports if you haven't lately. In short, they've read you off a docket number that may or may not be the real thing, but what it means to you is that you now need to exercise due diligence to make sure there isn't a pending case or god forbid a default judgment that's been moldering for years. There are occasions where judgments do not get picked up by the big 3 CRAs. A lot of this work can be done online.P.S. - I suspect that the intense effort to get you to admit the debt potentially relates to such an oral admission being OK to reset the SOL clock in Pennsylvania ... you need to check whether that's the case, because it's possible they will just falsely go ahead and say you did it ... or they may just file the case and hope for a default, but if you do go into court to defend a judge that favors the plaintiff could simply ask you while you're sworn if it's your debt and a truthful "yes" answer (the only kind of answer you should ever provide is the truthful kind) would scr*w you. There are some carefully-worded answers that could be provided, but if the judge doesn't want to hear it they won't be availing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovebostons Posted September 9, 2008 Report Share Posted September 9, 2008 You've got some serious FDCPA violations against them. These violations could get you around $1,000 ea. Threatening jail time, loss of property, refusing to validate and more. You might want to visit debtorboards.com and find out how to fight this. They are offline updating their website right now but keep trying there's great pro se help there.BUT YOU HAVE TO GET YOURSELF A TAPE RECORDER AND GET THEM TO SAY ALL THAT THEY SAID BEFORE.I am being harassed by Tom Landis Esq, PA. I have received numerous calls threatening jail time, loss of my property, and have now received a letter stating if I do not reply to it within 30 days, it will revalidate the debt. The OC is out of business, no longer exists. The debt was charged off several years ago and is out of Statute of Limitations since 2003.The lady who called cursed me, started reading me what she referred to as a court docket number, stated I was facing fraud charges, jail time, unless I would admit to her this was my debt. I asked who the original OC was and written proof of orginal amount of debt. She stated I was not entitled to this information. I told her I was not going to speak with her anymore. She demanded I go immediately to a Western Union and pay the debt and no charges would be pressed. When I responded she was in violation of laws for making such threats, the phone clicked and she got nice and said, 'by law, I must inform you this is an attempt to collect a debt. So you are admitting you owe this money?" I stated I was not admitting to anything and to not call back.What do I do? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Methuss Posted September 9, 2008 Report Share Posted September 9, 2008 Be VERY careful dealing with debt collectors in Pensylvania. Pensylvania allows debt collectors to take your car in payment of a judgment against you. They can just send someone over to put it on a tow hook and take it away. Likewise they can also take your house in that State subject to any exemption you may have for equity. For this they would file a lien and then foreclose the lien. Pensylvania isn't a pretty place to be if you have a judgment against you.The FDCPA says they are in violation if they threaten anything they cannot legally do or have no intention to do. They can take your property. And, it's kind of hard to prove they have no intent to do so.But the threats of criminal prosecution are a total violation. Private people have no legal authority to file criminal charges. That is up to the district attorney.So do as others have said and get a $20 phone line tap from Radio Shack and a handheld tape recorder. Next time these jokers call, record it. Since you have a letter from them check to see what State they are in. If they are from outside Pensylvania then you can record the call without telling them (interstate is controlled by Federal law and that says you can record it without disclosure to them). If they are in Pensylvania then the State law applies and says you must tell them you are recording -- Likewise, they must tell you if they are recording or it is a FELONY.As for the letter. Send a certified letter to them Denying the debt and telling them that even if it was yours, the statute of limitations has run its course. Include a cease and desist in your letter telling them to stop contacting you and that any further contact will result in legal action to protect your rights.That should do it. If they call or write to you after that then they are just stupid and deserve a nice whack to their pocketbook for violating the law. Feel not only free to file suit, but feel justified as well....if they have done this to you it is highly probably they are doing it to others. The only way to shut them down is to establish a pattern of behavior for the FTC to take action upon. Make sure you complain to your local attorney general's office as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flacorps Posted September 9, 2008 Report Share Posted September 9, 2008 As for the letter. Send a certified letter to them Denying the debt and telling them that even if it was yours, the statute of limitations has run its course. Include a cease and desist in your letter telling them to stop contacting you and that any further contact will result in legal action to protect your rights.Umm ... wouldn't that advice only apply if the OP had made darn sure there was no pending court case and no prior judgment? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NYMatt Posted September 9, 2008 Report Share Posted September 9, 2008 1. Call up the local courts and see if there is a suit against you.2.If there is find out when they supposedly served a summons and complaint.This lawyer doesn't have much of a case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whocares Posted September 10, 2008 Report Share Posted September 10, 2008 This scam has been well publicizedthe tip off is the western union paymentplease check this linkhttp://www.budhibbs.com/debtcollectorpages/burak_donald_s_attorney_cmts.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Credithis Posted September 10, 2008 Report Share Posted September 10, 2008 All the above is true, check every county for court filings! Please, Send that DV to them today CMRR!!! That won't do anything if a case has been filed however, it does show proof if no case has been filed that they have your correct address and may mitigate having "sewer service" attempted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
admin Posted September 10, 2008 Report Share Posted September 10, 2008 What a scum! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maksl53 Posted September 12, 2008 Report Share Posted September 12, 2008 deleted Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Methuss Posted September 12, 2008 Report Share Posted September 12, 2008 Umm ... wouldn't that advice only apply if the OP had made darn sure there was no pending court case and no prior judgment?The collector said the court docket was a lawsuit claiming criminal fraud. I seriously doubt there is such a court case. It is clear the OPs phone number is known. If there were criminal charges then law enforcement would be getting the address from the phone company and showing up for an arrest. You don't get sued for criminal charges, you get arrested. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flacorps Posted September 12, 2008 Report Share Posted September 12, 2008 The collector said the court docket was a lawsuit claiming criminal fraud. I seriously doubt there is such a court case. It is clear the OPs phone number is known. If there were criminal charges then law enforcement would be getting the address from the phone company and showing up for an arrest. You don't get sued for criminal charges, you get arrested.And we all know that paralegals in lawyers' offices are paragons of clear communication and that OPs repeat what they heard verbatim. It's a game of telegraph, and it's quite possible that the words that we heard could (properly or improperly) have come out of the mouth of someone working for a firm that held a run-of-the mill judgment that hadn't been paid. They could say "fraud on the court" or something like it for having failed to respond to discovery in aid of execution, the OP could hear "criminal fraud".They could say "arrested" for not having responded (bodily attachment), she could hear "jail time". Just because some part of the story doesn't add up doesn't mean that the story may lack any shred of legitimacy at a particular point of its genesis. Due diligence is very important before jumping to conclusions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BTO429 Posted September 12, 2008 Report Share Posted September 12, 2008 FDCPA 807(4)(4) The representation or implication that nonpayment of any debt will result in the arrest or imprisonment of any person or the seizure, garnishment, attachment, or sale of any property or wages of any person unless such action is lawful and the debt collector or creditor intends to take such action. There is no such thing as debtors prison.Only one way you can be arrested over a debt is if you continually do not show up for court and the plaintiff asks for a body attachment.I have a ca that has been after me since 2002 over a judgment they got while I was in Iraq, I have never been arrested over it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harassedtodeath Posted September 19, 2008 Author Report Share Posted September 19, 2008 The collector said the court docket was a lawsuit claiming criminal fraud. I seriously doubt there is such a court case. It is clear the OPs phone number is known. If there were criminal charges then law enforcement would be getting the address from the phone company and showing up for an arrest. You don't get sued for criminal charges, you get arrested.The CA stated it was criminal charges, and read really fast a number and then called it a dockett #. I have contacted all the local counties around me and there are no cases filed or pending. When I asked the woman, who called herself 'Judy' to repeat the number so I could write it down, she refused. When I told her I thought her actions were illegal, the phone made a clicking noise and she got a little nice and stated, 'by law I am required to inform you this is an attempt to collect a debt.' She called me by a different name, by the way, and I told her she had the wrong person then. The phone made some more clicking noises, I thought she had hung up at first and was getting ready to hang up myself, and she screamed, "Oh, G***am, here we go again, another f*****g deadbeat!!" Then I hung up on her. Now, they are calling repeatedly every day, won't say anything if I do answer, and the numbers are beginning to come from Out of area, cell phones, unpublished, etc. They won't say anything, they just breath. I am disabled, suffering from PTSD due to a gang sex assault. The breathing calls are sending me over the edge. I was assaulted by several coworkers and this is what they used to do to me. I had one nervous breakdown and spent time in the hospital for it. This has triggered many flashbacks and I am near going back into the hospital. Are the breather calls alone harassment? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BTO429 Posted September 19, 2008 Report Share Posted September 19, 2008 A CA can not file criminal charges against you. If they DA had filed criminal charges against you, you would have already known about it as you would have had a visit from the local police dept. I wouldn't worry to much about it. If they call again record it and file suit against them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flacorps Posted September 19, 2008 Report Share Posted September 19, 2008 I suggest having the phone company put a trap and trace on your line so that these calls will give up their ANIs (the part of the phone call's origin that can't be spoofed or masked). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
admin Posted September 19, 2008 Report Share Posted September 19, 2008 Also, if you haven't done so, send them a request to stop communication. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts