West Virginia Attorney General Darrell McGraw announced on Tuesday, April 17 that his office filed suit against seven unlicensed collection agencies and their owners. The suit was filed to enforce investigative subpoenas and to keep them from engaging in unlawful practices in the mountain state.
The companies and individuals in the suit include:
· County Filing Services, Inc., Portfolio Investment Financial, and Todd Loop
· Investment Management and Recoveries, Inc. and Randall Ray Goins
· Rosenthal, Stein and Associates, LLC and Sharisse Williams
· Vision Credit Solutions, LLC and James P. Belstadt
· National Capital Management, Inc., Ryan Daniel Todora, and Natalie Lynn Rowe
· Dorsey Thornton & Associates, LLC, Wyteria Dorsey and Michael Thornton
McGraw's office opened investigations of these companies after receiving complaints alleging that they engaged in a wide range of abusive and unlawful debt collection practices, including repeated harassing phone calls, impersonating law enforcement and judicial officers, making false threats that nonpayment will result in arrest or criminal prosecution, and collecting nonexistent debts or debts that have already been paid.
After receiving the complaints, McGraw's office issued investigative subpoenas requiring the companies to produce records of all their collection activities in West Virginia. The companies refused to comply with the subpoenas, which led to the filing of this enforcement action.
"In recent years, my office has been flooded with complaints against companies making unlawful threats of arrest or legal action to coerce consumers to pay nonexistent debts or debts that have already been paid," stated McGraw. "These companies refuse to become licensed in West Virginia and often go through great lengths to keep their whereabouts hidden in order to evade regulation. I have directed my staff to aggressively pursue all such violators and to do whatever it takes to force compliance with laws governing the conduct of collection agencies."
To report a scam or file a complaint, West Virginians can reach the Attorney General's Office online or by calling the Consumer Protection Hotline at 1-800-368-8808. For regular consumer news updates, follow "AGWestV" on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.
All content © Copyright 2000 - 2013 WorldNow and WVNS. All Rights Reserved.
