The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and New York Attorney General’s Office filed a joint lawsuit to shutdown phantom debt collection scheme.
The lawsuit is part of the FTC’s ongoing crackdown against the operators of phantom debt chain including those selling fake debt portfolios and harrasing consumers to collect phony debt.
The defendants in the lawsuit include Hylan Management LLC and its owner Andrew Shaevel and Worldwide Processing Group, LLC and its owner Frank Ungaro Jr.
In the complaint, the FTC and New York AG’s Office alleged that the defendants violated the FTC Act and New York’s fair debt collection statute. They also violated the state’s laws prohibiting deceptive practices.
Additionally, the Commission and the AG’s Office accused some of the defendants of violating the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
Allegations against phantom debt chain operators
According to the lawsuit, Hylan and its owner Shaevel knew that some of their debt portfolios are fraudulent. They received fake debts that consumers did not owe from Joel Tucker and Hirsh Mohindra—known peddlers of phantom debt. Despite the knowledge, they still placed the fake debts for collection.
