A California man pleaded guilty to federal charges of money laundering, mail and wire fraud in connection with a collection agency scam he ran in the state that bilked $2.7 million from customers of clients.
Paul A. Vasquez, of Santa Clarita, Calif., is the third defendant to be charged for operating an agency that used telemarketers to contact debtors and arrange payments that client companies never received.
The agency operated under the names Maxwell, Turner & Associates and Stanley, Morgan & Associates Inc., with aliases including Nationwide Legal Support, Free Skiptracing on All Accounts and Timely Remittances.
Vasquez, 27, allegedly ran the operation. Stefan Lemar Miller, 32, also of Santa Clarita, Calif., was sentenced in November to six years and nine months, while Darrian Jeffrey Summers, 41, of Taft, Calif., received eight years for the scheme.
Vasquez is due to be sentenced in late April. He faces a maximum sentence of 20 years and a $250,000 fine.
