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Mission Settlement Agency Indicted

Michael Agruss

Written and Reviewed by Michael Agruss

  • Managing Partner and Personal Injury Lawyer at Mike Agruss Law.
  • Over 20 years of experience in Personal Injury.
  • Over 8000+ consumer rights cases settled.
  • Graduated from the University of Illinois Chicago School of Law: Juris Doctor, 2004.

Mission Settlement Agency Indicted

In the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s first criminal referral, the Mission Settlement Agency, its manager Michael Levitis, and three employees have been indicted in Manhattan District Court. The debt-settlement company is accused of defrauding more than 1,200 people struggling with credit-card debt.The Manhattan District Attorney, Preet Bharara, announced the unsealing of the indictment on May 7, 2013; his office says the defendants “systematically exploited and defrauded” people across the country. “Preying upon the financial desperation of individuals struggling to pay their credit card debts, the defendants falsely and fraudulently tricked over a thousand such individuals into becoming Mission’s customer with significant — but false — assurances about Mission’s ability to help,” according to the indictment.The company lied about its fees and stole thousands of dollars from funds its customers believed would be used to pay creditors. For most of its customers, Mission did nothing to reduce their debt, and virtually no work. Instead, Levitis spent their money on the expenses of a nightclub he controlled, lease payments for two Mercedes-Benz cars, and credit card bills for his mother. Mission operated out of two offices, one in Brooklyn and one in Manhattan; a woman who answered the phone at a number listed on the company website declined to comment on the charges.This is the first criminal case brought by the CFPB, which has come down with civil charges against other fraudulent entities preying on vulnerable people. Payday Loan Debt Solution Inc., a debt-relief company in Florida, was ordered in December 2012 to pay $100,000 in refunds to customers, under the first joint enforcement action between the CFPB and states. It’s encouraging that someone may actually go to jail for taking advantage of thousands of people, instead of just paying a fine.If a collection agency has harassed you, you may be entitled to money damages up to $1,000.00, based on the FDCPA, which has been around for almost 35 years. The FDCPA is a federal law that applies to every state. In other words, everyone is protected by the FDCPA. The FDCPA is essentially a laundry list of what debt collectors can and cannot do while collecting a debt, as well as things debt collectors must do while collecting a debt. Plus, the FDCPA has a fee-shift provision. This means, the collection agency pays your attorney’s fees and costs. Founding attorney, Michael Agruss, has settled over 1,500 debt collection harassment cases. We want to help you, too. 

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