Debt busters busted

The federal government is cracking down on hardball debt collection tactics, and that can include prison time.

The Nevada Financial Institutions Division says it has joined with other state agencies across the nation in providing support for the Federal Trade Commission's effort. A spokesperson for the Nevada division said this includes “work[ing] to identify illegal debt collection activity by sharing information about investigation targets, developing ways for federal and state law enforcement organizations to work with state regulatory agencies with jurisdiction over debt collectors, along with forming working groups to look into companies that may be violating state or federal debt collection laws, and jointly investigating and filing actions against illegal debt collectors.”

Last year consumers filed 280,000 complaints with federal agencies about debt collection tactics. In the past month collectors in Illinois and Ohio have been sent to prison for violations of debt collection laws.