Check Processing Bureau Enforcement Division debt collection fraud New York New York

Roommate received letter dated 3/8/2008 claiming he had a bad check to CompUSA in the amount of 219.16, addressed to him at his one time South Carolina address - where he hasn't lived for roughly 7 years. The letter threatens civil and criminal action if not immediate payment. The letter lists a "Sanford Hutton" at ext 112, as the contact.

BBB of NYC states this is not a licensed debt collection agency in New York state and that they have been receiving complaints about the company since 2006 - all basically identical but for the supposed source of the debt. See:
http://espanol.newyork.bbb.org/default.aspx?pid=1398 (the page is in English despite the "espanol" at the beginning of the url).

Note a Google search turns up 2 lawsuits naming the company as defendant:
Ray v Check Processing Bureau of NY, SDNY 2007 cv10567, and McDanel v Check Processing Bureau, et al, SDKY 2007 cv 00082. and NUMEROUS consumer complaints in multiple states.

Check your credit reports to see if there is any semblance of authenticity to their claim, contest the claim if not, and report them to the Attorney General's office in your state and New York, the BBB, and if I am correct that it is the FTC that regulates debt collection practices - to that agency as well.

John
Phoenix, Arizona
U.S.A.