Scammers still seeking to grab your cash

March 4, 2012

By Mike Weland Publisher Never before in human history as information been shared more freely or become more readily available than today, and never before have those who avail themselves of this boon been more vulnerable to those who would abuse it ... the scammers who want to slip a finger into your pocket to take from you the money you've earned and to which they have no right. Sadly, too many of us, especially in communities such as Boundary County, where honesty and trust walks hand-in-hand with friendship and neighborliness, are a little too trusting. According to Bounday County Sheriff's Investigator Dave McClelland, too many of us are falling prey to some of the oldest tricks in the book. Many of the more sophisticated scammers use old-fashioned methods to lure their victims, but, thanks to the Internet, they have much credible information at hand with which to convince. A lot of these scams, McClelland said, begins with a good old fashioned phone call purportedly from someone you've likely done business with in the past. In the "good old days" the call may have actually been from that business; today, however, it could very well be someone who has obtained the old records off the 'net ... or it might even be an actual representative of the company or an affiliate seeking to collect debts that were written off long ago. "If a debt collector calls and tells you that you owe, for instance, a credit card debt from years ago, and offers you the opportunity to settle the account for cents on the dollar, don't do it," said scam expert and former Boundary County Chief Deputy Sheriff Tim Day, who is currently a member of the Sheriff's Posse. "This will reinstate a debt that was written off long ago, and it will be collectable in full, just as if it was a new debt." It doesn't matter how the debt came to be in default; whether it was written off by accountants as uncollectible for non-payment or written off legally through a court of law in bankruptcy, the fact is, the debt was, by accounting and legal standards, written off, and it's no longer a binding legal obligation ... a debt no longer legally owed. Until the former debtor "confesses," acknowledging the debt. Unfortunately, there are trusted agencies in Boundary County employing this method to collect old and supposedly forgiven debt that was written off long ago. By seemingly offering an "out," the chance to pay off the no-longer-existent debt at a reduced rate or by easy monthly installments, they legally obligate those who incurred those debts, but for whatever reason couldn't pay, and they seem to offer the delinquent debtor a chance to atone. Once the debtor admits the obligation in an attempt to do what's right, though, they're once again legally bound for the full amount of the original debt, agreement notwithstanding. With the admission, a thing most debtors offer willingly, as they recognize their debt and are ashamed of their inability to pay, comes the right to collect, including garnished wages and the seizure of property and possessions. What's most sad in this scam, especially locally, is the loss of trust.