Debt Relief Company Exposed For Scamming Over $85 Million.

In recent news media, a Florida Debt Relief and Credit Counseling organization, run together by 3 different owners (Jeremy Marcus, Craig Smith, and Yisbet Segrea) and 11 different company names was shut down by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for scamming it’s clients of over $80 million. The bogus debt relief and credit counseling operation targeted mostly lower class, disabled, and elderly consumers and is required to surrender only $35 million. The organization would require it’s clients to pay extraordinary high monthly fees ranging from a few hundred dollars to thousands.

The operation was run completely underground, running under eleven different company names. They advertised that they could repair your credit, solve all of your debt problems, and improve your credit score. The organization also advertised extremely low up front fees, however, once they took you on as a client, they did exactly the opposite by charging insanely high rates with un-payable interest. Clients, over time, discovered that they were actually in increasingly more debt then they ever had in the first place and with even lower credit scores. There were many cases in which clients were even sued by the debtors, and only then did those clients decide to file bankruptcies.

As a result to being shut down by the Federal Trade Commission, Jeremy Marcus, Craig Smith, and Yisbet Segrea are not only required to surrender $35 million in fees, but also nearly all of their property assets as well, which include expensive luxury cars, upscale houses, and rare collectible items.

This is just one of many reasons why credit repair and debt relief is not a smart choice to make when considering to rebuild your credit, solve your debt problems, or improve your credit score. When pursuing debt relief/credit counseling, not only are you more likely to end up with more debt than you started with. Filing for bankruptcy, on the other hand, is an extremely safe and responsible route to take. You will be represented by an actual attorney who has years of experience and will know exactly what your’e going through.

Moreno, P. (2018, April 18). Phony Debt Relief Scammers Pay $35 Million in Consumer Redress – USA Herald. Retrieved April 20, 2018, from https://usaherald.com/phony-debt-relief-scammers-pay-35-million-consumer-redress/