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pkf

I have debt with ING (Island National Group) for a debt that I was offered a 1/2 agreeement. I made 1 payment on 04/03/08 and last night received a phone message saying I had a summons with a message to call. The Company Represented themselves as Brady & Caruso (Not sure of the spelling). I called this morning and it was regarding a debt I do not have. I told them I have not been served, received nothing in writing and did not know what debt this was. I requested a fax of info re debt and told agent I would call back. I then was called by the "Senior Partner" who said he listened in on the call and said if I did not authorize payment immediately in full he would freeze my assets and bank accounts with the push of a button. When I refused the to give bank info, the "SP" called my niece and threatened her with a lien on her house, then called my parents demanding payment for my debt, told them he would put a lien on my car (which has 61 payments left) and that he was going to garnish my wages if I did not pay withing 30 minutes. I think ING and this group are related. Phone numbers are 866-717-0360 and 716-696-6131-Totally Illegal actions on their part

Posted: Fri Apr 18, 2008 5:08 am Subject:

Welcome to the forum PKF.

I'm glad you came here, I just completed some extensive research on the entities you are dealing with. The first one Island National Group, I would suggest sending them a debt validation letter. Certified mail, return receipt requested. You can find a good template for the letter via my signature link, be sure to send the enclosure.

Posted: Fri Apr 18, 2008 5:28 am Subject:

Now, moving on. Here is contact information for ING:

Name:
ISLAND NATIONAL GROUP, LLC
Address:
6851 Jericho Turnpike Suite 180
Syosset, NY 11791
View Location Map

Phone Number:
(516) 682-4300
Type of Business:
collection agencies

ING apparently has a very bad history of problems with the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. I did some research on Brady and Caruso. I can't find a single thing about them. I think they don't exist and may be ING posing as this law office. I can't find anything on google, The Better Business Bureau, or the NY state Bar Association.

Posted: Fri Apr 18, 2008 5:32 am Subject:

Lastly, he cannot freeze your accounts/assets, garnish your wages, or place liens on your property without filing suit against you and winning a judgment. (this all falls under the basic human right that no person shall be deprived of life, liberty, or personal property without due process) Also their contacts to other members of your family is very illegal as it is forbidden by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. At this point I would suggest filing complaints with the Federal Trade Commission, your state Attorney General's office, and the NY state Attorney General's Office. You may also wish to retain your own attorney for civil action for these gross violations of the fdcpa.

Christie · Posted: Wed May 14, 2008 3:02 pm Subject:

I just got a call from them stating I was a person of contact in a pending complaint and they needed to get a message to my neighbor (I don't even now them). Left a case # and told me to have them call. Confused

Christie · Posted: Wed May 14, 2008 3:04 pm Subject:

Guess I should add he was also from David and Curuso with the phone # 716-696-6131

Posted: Wed May 14, 2008 6:04 pm Subject:

Oh they, Brady and Caruso, have a website all right but it's being worked on nothing on there,lol. I looked around and found nothing, I checked manta already too.

(516) 682-4300 you posted this number. I found these results

Grebe, Andrew
(516) 682-4300
51 CHARLES LINDBERGH BLVD
Uniondale, NY 11553

Clinton, Holly
(516) 682-4300
51 CHARLES LINDBERGH BLVD
Uniondale, NY 11553

nodebtnomore · Posted: Wed May 14, 2008 7:39 pm Subject: Brady Caruso & Associates, LLC

Brady, Caruso & Associates, LLC
2858 Niagara Falls Blvd.
Amherst, NY 14228
(although USPS says zip is for Buffalo)
(866)717-0360
(716)696-6144 (716)696-6131 (716)691-6146
fax (716)696-6134

This is Kieth Marshall and Richard Ziolkowski and yet another new dummy corp they have set up.........
have gone by names:
Marshall Ziolkowski
Abrams Burke
Kingman Cole
and now Brady, Caruso & Associates

After doing research I would not pay anyone from these businesses. Report/complaint to FTC, to New York State Attorney Generl Office and to your own state's Attorney General's Office.

Collectors like this have no ethics/morals and use intimidation (extortion)to get payments that you may or may not legally owe.

nodebtnomore · Posted: Sat May 17, 2008 4:44 pm Subject: Brady Caruso & Associates, LLC

May 2008 Brady, Caruso & Associates, LLC Amherst, NY

First call came to my work number on voice mail message left by a Miss Martin - stated she represented Brady and Caruso, and then stated the case was filed with my county and gave me a case number...stated it was important that I return the call immediately. I happen to do work that involves lots of court filings and as she did not say it was a personal matter, I assumed it had to do with my work and did not immediately return her call.

She then called again and gave her name as Miss Martin with Brady and Caruso and asked if I had received the message she left the previous day. I told her that I had received the message but that the case number she had left was incomplete and I did not know which file she was calling about..I still did not realize this was a personal call....she stated that the file she was calling about was me....and spouted my social security number at me asking me to verify it....I asked her what this was regarding and she told me they were verifying my information as a summons was being served and unless I wanted the summons server to come to my work, I needed to verify information....I told her to have the summons server sent as I would not discuss personal business at work and on the phone. I told her I did not want her or Brady and Caruso contacting me at my work number and I hung up.

She immediately called back and left another message on my voice mail stating that a summons would be served the following Monday at my place of employment unless I contacted her by 9:00 am the following day.

I then checked with the Superior Court and verified that there has been no filing against me and the case number is not a good number.

On Monday around noon, my supervisor received a call from a Russell Barr @ Brady and Caruso. My supervisor also did not realize this was not a business call and asked for the case number, which Mr. Barr was kind enough to give him, when he also told Mr. Barr that the case number was not coming up...he was then told that the case number was the legal filing number in a case against me in a collection matter over which I was being sued. My supervisor sent me an e-mail informing me of this and came to ask if there was a problem.

On Tuesday Mr. Russell Barr (or Barrity?) left a message on my work voice mail identifying himself as the "Senior Partner" of Brady and Caruso and stated that he understood I had discussed my account with Household/Orchard Bank earlier that day with Ms. Martin. He then again repeated that there was a "lawsuit" and my case number..he then gave me until 9:00am New York Time to call.

Now today, I received at work an unsigned letter which had been faxed to my work fax machine (but addressed to my home address) which states they are a collection agency and are attempting to collect a debt. The letter is not marked personal and confidential and gives information which all of my co-workers using the fax machine were able to view.

The good thing about the fax is that it did come on their letterhead so that I can send them certified letters requesting they not contact me and that they validate this debt which I believe to have been discharged in a bankruptcy/divorce in 1996!

Posted: Sat May 17, 2008 7:44 pm Subject:

AZ · Posted: Wed May 21, 2008 9:45 am Subject: Brady and Caruso 716-6966131

A rep from this company called and threatened me on a debt that wasnt even mine. I am reporting them to the BBB, NY State attorney, AZ state Attorney and FTC. This is illegal and they cannot do this.

WayInReach · Posted: Wed May 21, 2008 1:51 pm Subject: Brady & Caruso

A call came in to my VM an hour or so ago. When I called back this REALLY rude person tried to get me to give them money for a bill that I never had. This is not legal as far as I know. I will report them ASAP. Looks like these people are on the bad side of business.

nomoredebt · Posted: Thu May 22, 2008 12:46 pm Subject:

first call was a case numer i called back and frank lucas said he was from brady and cruso and i was sent sumons in the mail wich i wasn't he sid he's not a mailman,then told me how much i owed i didnt even know what he was king about called ir nd if don't have this money im going to court, then called brother for the money insisting my broher was my father, and then called and asked me for checking info.and asked if i had a house i said no he said you will never have nothing we'll stop you..... 1866-717-0360 696-6143

Posted: Thu May 22, 2008 8:23 pm Subject:

Did he disclose any information about this debt to anyone other than yourself?

Also I would suggest checking with your local court clerk to see if anything has been filed. It sounds like they are trying to scare you and have violated the fdcpa in the process, which you can file civil suit for $1,000 in statutory damages.

TommyT · Posted: Sun Jul 27, 2008 3:11 pm Subject: Illegal Contact

Saw your comments re: non-legality of contacting family or friends for info on bad debt individuals. This in fact happened to us this week concerning our daughter's unpaid debt (carloan- reposessed). Somehow, they managed to get my wife's cell # !!! How do they do this? They also claimed that my wife is named as a "secondary" on a pending court action. When contacted by B&C, their SP said they misspoke, and of course if we gave them our bank acct #s they would withdraw what was needed and everything would "go away", or alternatively, they would "PUSH THE BUTTON" to activate the court filing!!!! Unbelievable! The audacity of these companies is historic... We assisted our daughter in researching the difficulties, and found a statement from the loan bank indicating that the loan debt was discharged (written off) and closed a year ago at least.
Legally, I am sure that we can dismiss their claims of payment owed them (they said they now carry the debt from the bank and are collecting on their behalf.) We will send them our own certified Cease and Desist letter and threaten THEM with action if they do not comply.
Thank you for all of your comments

TOMT

ec

The Times-Record newspaper of Ft. Smith Arkansas published an article about the Kingman Cole scam on July 11. Here's a particularly interesting excerpt regarding the Arkansas Attorney General's take on this scam:

"'Arkansas Consumer Advocates attorney Chip] Sexton said Arkansas Consumer Advocates called the number given the woman and was told it had reached the New York-based Kingman Cole Law Firm. When the group asked for specific information about its attorneys, the alleged law firm employee refused to provide it and hung up, Sexton said. Sexton said no such law firm exists in the Buffalo area, and when the advocates called the Attorney General’s Office, they found it knew of the scam. He said the Attorney General’s Office advises anyone receiving a similar call to hang up and not provide the caller any confidential information."

Doesn't get more definitive than that. You can read the entire here: swtimesDOTcom/articles/2008/07/11/news/news01.txt

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