Consumer complaint received 2021-05-20
Company: JPMORGAN CHASE & CO.
State: TX
Product: Debt collection
Sub-product: Credit card debt
Issue: False statements or representation
Sub-issue: Indicated you were committing crime by not paying debt

Complaint:
I received a recorded message at XXXX XXXX on XX/XX/XXXX, telling me that it was imperative that I or my attorney contact the office of XXXX XXXX  XXXX immediately regarding a legal matter. The caller ID on my phone showed a local number, XXXX, as the origin of the call. The return call number was XXXX. 
I am an XXXX licensed in Texas, so I returned the call at XXXX XXXX that same day. A young man answered, and I told him my name and that I was returning a call. He identified himself as " XXXX XXXX with XXXX XXXX XXXX mediation services '' and asked me to verify the last 4 digits of my SSN. I refused and asked him what it was regarding ; he simply repeated his name and employer information. He said he could not discuss anything with me until I confirmed the last 4 digits of my SSN. 
Once I did so, he again claimed to work for a " mediation services law firm '' and said they were hired to resolve a dispute between me and XXXX XXXX. He claimed that XXXX XXXX has sent numerous notices to me at my residence, which they have not, and his firm was hired to contact me about resolving a dispute. I specifically asked him, " Are you a debt collector? Is this an attempt to collect a debt? Will any information I provide you be used for that purpose? '' He repeated, " I'm XXXX XXXX with XXXX XXXX XXXX, and we are a mediation firm hired by XXXX XXXX to help you resolve this dispute ''. I asked him, " Is XXXX XXXX a debt collector? Are you attempting to collect a debt on their behalf? '' He refused to answer, but implied that there might be criminal consequences for non-cooperation. 
I told him that I would not discuss anything else with him until he told me the name of the original creditor. When I made that demand, he said, " this is an account with Chase card services, and it involves an accusation that you attempted to defraud a financial institution. I can confirm the account number for you '', and he read off a 16 digit account number that may have been my old credit card number. I asked him if XXXX XXXX had purchased the charged off debt from Chase or from another debt collector, but he wouldn't answer. 
I told him that I'd not had a Chase account in over 10 years, that I'd not received any communication from Chase in about 10 years, that I'd not received any communication from XXXX XXXX XXXX, and I wanted to know the exact date that the account was opened, the date of my last payment, the date on which I was alleged to have breached the payment agreement, and the date on which it was charged off. He replied, " well, if you really are a lawyer, then you know the date it was opened doesn't matter ; only the date it was charged off. That was XX/XX/XXXX. '' I told him that the statute of limitations in Texas to sue for breach of contract is 4 years, that the statute had run, and that I could no longer be sued. He again made reference to defrauding a financial institution and repeated that he worked for a XXXX XXXX XXXX and was trying to help me resolve this matter ''. I told him that I would not speak to him or anyone else on the phone about this ; that either XXXX XXXX XXXX or XXXX XXXX would need to send me a written validation notice as required by the FDCPA. That all communication would need to be in writing, that I would no longer respond to telephone calls, and I would report any additional phone calls as violations of the FDCPA. 
I have no idea if there is a law firm called XXXX XXXX XXXX, nor do I know if there really is a XXXX XXXX. I do know that the caller used a spoofed number to reach me, refused to identify himself as a debt collector, referred to an attempt by me to defraud a financial institution, implied that I could face criminal consequences if I didn't resolve the matter, made a number of false statements about past attempts at written communication, misrepresented himself as a mediator, and refused to directly answer a number of my questions that the FDCPA requires a debt collector to answer.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation