IJNITED STATESDISTRICT COURT

SOUTHERN DISTRICT O F FLO RIDA

W EST PALM BEACH DIW SION

STEELE GR ANTE,

Plaintil,

V.

BAu O F AM ERICA NATIONAL

ASSO G ATION.

Defendant.

/

CASE NO.:

FILEDBy M6+ D.c.

JUL 28 2222

CANGELA E. NOBLE

SLE9KU.s.DlST. CX

.D.()FFLA.- 'h'RB.

CO M PLM NT AGAIN ST BANK OF AM ERICA NATIONAL ASSOCIATION

ThePlaintil,STEELE GRANI'E,(hereinafterPlaintio ,prose,bringstlislawsuit

againstDefendant,BANK OFAMERICA NATIONALASSOCIATION,(hereinaRerreferred

toasBOA)andstates:

'Ihis is an action for dam ages which exceedsthe amountof twenty thousand

dolars($20,000.00),exclusiveofinterest,costsandattomey'sfees.

2. Ata11timesmaterialhereto,the PlaintiF isand wasa residentofPalm Beach

County,FloridaAtalltim esmaterialhereto,Defendant,BOA islicensed in Floridaand with its

primaryplaceofbusinessinCharlotte,NorthCarolina.

4. 28U.S.C.j1331statesthatDistrictCourtsshalhavetoriginaljurisdictionofal

civilactionsarisingundertheconstim tion,laws,orkeatiesoftheUnited States.''

11* circuitl'nqmade clearthata Federalcourthms FederalJM sdiction overa

FCRA claim purslmntto28U.S.C.j1331. SeeLocer#v.Equfa ,Inc.,163/7341259(11tl,

Cir.1998)

Case 9:20-cv-81083-WPD Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 07/08/2020 Page 1 of 10
6. ThePlaintic scomplaintseeksrecoverytmderthefollowingFederalRegulations

œswellasBreach ofContractlnlLiabilityregulatedundertheFederalJurisdiction:

A. FairDebtColectionPracticesAct,FDCPA 15U.S.C.91692k

B. TruthinLendingAct(TILA),15U.S.C.1601-1667.

'rhiscourtmaypromrlyexercisesupplementaljurisdictiontohearanystate1aw

claimsinthePlaintiffsComplaintbecause itformsapartofthesamecontroversyunderM icle

IIIoftheUnitedStatesConstitution.28U.S.C.j1331,1367,and1441(a)and(c);seealsoReed

v.HeilCo.,206#tJ#JPJJ,1058(11thCir.2000)ClFederalcourtscanexercisesupplemental

jurisdictionoverstatelaw claimsthatform partofthesamecaseorcontroversyastheclaim with

originalfederaljurisdiction.')

8. WhereforejurisdictionandvenueareproperlybeforethisHonorableCourt.

FACTUAL BACK GROUND

9. Begilm ing onoraboutAugust1,2017,thePlaintiffsuFered acomplete identity

theA andm ultipleaccounttakeovers,oneofwhichwastheaccountw1111BOA.

10. Subsequently,unauthorized,fraudulent charges were m ade on the Visa Credit

CardAccountnumber4003902016762888issuedbytheDefendantBOA.

This accountnumberwmsthe newly issued accountnumberthatBOA c'reated

afterfraudulenttransactionswerepreviouslydiscoveredontheoriginalV isaCard.

12. Fraudulentcharges to this accountwere made on severalocc% ions between

November2017andM ay2018.

Pam ents to the accountwere also being m ade fraudulently online from the

plaintiffs ahzmhed bank accounts with BOA,allowing the criminalperm trators to reuse the

accountform orefraudulentcharges.

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14. OnoraboutSeptember20,20l8,plaintifrnoticedlowerth% normalbalancesand

m issing fundsfrom severalm rsonaland btlsiness bnnk accountsand tm ced severalm ym ents

backtomultiplecreditcardsheldbythePlintifll

15. M ultiple,unauthorized,fraudulentchargeswerediscovered bythePlaintil on his

BOA VisaCreditCardaccount.n eamountoftheâaudulentchargesidentified atthattim ewas

$24,354.59(acopyisattachedasExhibit$W'').

16. Plaintif im mediately contacted Defendant,BOA,and wastold thathisaccount

would immediately be credited for the fraudulent charges,and that the matter would be

investigated furtherthroughtheirFraudDepartmentuntilresolution.

17. Additionslly,Plaintiff wms told he needed to file a police report with the

appropriateStateand FederalLaw Enforcementauthorities.

18. On October12,2018,PlaintiF filed apolice reportw1t11the Boca Raton Police

DepartmentandspokewithOfficerJ.Cortez(2211,CSO)(A686)who,subsequentlycollected

additionalinformationfortherem rt(acopyisattnchedasExhibitHB'').Several,subsequent

addendum s to the originalreporthave been filed since then ms more fraudulentactivity was

discoveredonseveralaccounts.

19. Plaintiffwas also told to file a com plaintw1t11the FederalTrade Comm ission

(FTC).ThiswascompletedonNovemGr14,2018(acopyisatachedasExhibitç$C'').

20. Through verbaland written communication w1 a1 the three major Credit

Bureaus,Experian,Equifax and Tranq Union,Plaintil discovered thatAA-L ofM s Pen onal

Inform ation waspublicand available forsaleon theunderground internet,including the

onlineIoginstom any ofhigaccounts.

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21. FederalandStateLaw Enforcem entAgencies,theFederalTradeCommission,the

BocaRaten PoliceDepartmentand a1 threemajorcreditbureaus,Equifax,Transunion and

Experian,a1lthoroughlycross-referenceda1 thefraudulentactivityandunanimouslyver6ed

andr/e - e#theM eae Tk+ âe/weeathem.

COIJNT I.CIW L THER

22. Plaintiffream rmsandreallegesparap aphs1-21asthoughfullysetforthherein.

23. 'I'lisisanactionforciviltheftpurslnnttoFla.Stat.9772.11.

24. Defendant has obtained and/or USe'II$38.654.97 of Plaintiœ s m oney without

Plaintitrspermission.

25. DefendantdidlmlawfullyandknowinglyuseorendeavortousePlaintic sm oney

and did knowingly deprive orendeavor to deprive Plaintifr of its m oney w1t11the intentto

temm mrilyorpermanentlydeprivePlaintiF ofitsrighttothemoneyandbenefitthereotla1lfor

defendnnt'sown use,ortheuseofanypersonnotentitled thereto,inviolationofFloridaStatute

9812.014.

26. Fla.Stat.j812.014provides,(1)A personcommitstheftifheorsheknowingly

obtainsoruses,orendeavorsto obtain orto use,theproperty ofanotherwith intentto,either

temm rarily orperm anently:deprivetheotherpersonofarighttotheprom rty oraY nefit&om

theprom rty.

27. Purslnntto Florida Statute j772.11,PlaintiF made a snalwritten statutory

demandforitsproperty.A copyofthe statutorydem and senttodefendant BOA,including the

FedexLabeland beliveryContinnationofreceiptbyBOA isattached heretoascomposite

IlAtllilyit:tI2,.''

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28. Todate,anddespitedemandbyPlaintiflldefendanthn-qfailedtoreturnPlaintiY s

Pcope14y.

29. Asadirectandproximatecauseofdefendnnt'sunlawfulactions,PlaintiF wasand

continuestobedeprivedofitsrightto itspropertyandthebenefittherefrom andhmsse ered

damagesintheminimum amountof$3:,654.97.

30. PurslanttoFloridaStatutej772.11,Plaintiffisentitledtotreblednmagesinthe

minimum amountof591,964.91forthetheftofitsmoneycommittedbydefendnnt.

31. AsadirectresultofdefendantsdeprivingPlaintiFofitsrighttopossessandenjoy

itsm oney and the benefittherefrom,and defendants'continuing failtlre and refusalto return

PlaintiY s property,PlaintiF may be required to retain counseland is obligated to pay his

counselafee.

32.

W H EREFORE,Plaintiff,STEELE G RANTE,res- tfully requeststhisCourt

to enteraJudo entagainsttheDefendant,BOA,fordamagesse ered,trebledamagespursllnnt

PlaintiFisentitledtoanawardofatorneys'feesptzrsllnnttoFla.Stat.9772.11.

toFloridaStatutej772-11,costsofthislitigation,attomey'sfees,interestandanyotherrelief

tMsCourtdeemsappropriate,anddemandstrialbyjury.

CO IN H.BREACH O F CONTRACT

33. PlaintiF ream rmsand reallegesparagraphs 1-32 above asthough fully setforth

herein.

34. n e Card Holder Areem entbetween BOA and Plaintifl-is a valid contract

between bothparties.ItspecificallyprovidesthecardholderaGztn.o LiabilityGllarantee''against

anyunauthorizedcharges.

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35. n eonlineguaranteesandFAQ abouttheCreditCardaccount,whichthePlaintiF

held whh BOA,also clearly specify a ZERO LIABILIW GUARAN TEE for fraudulent,

unauthorized chargesaswellan IRON CLAD GUARANTEE to secure accessto the account

holder'sonlineaccountandm rsonalinformation.tseeattachedasExhibittE'').

36. n eCardHolderAp eem entBetween thePlaintif andDefendnntclearly outlines

how claimsmustbefiled.

37. Plainti/ adheredtothear eementinfilingtheclaim w1t1:thedefendant BOA.

38. Copies of the various ar eements and guarantees ms well as the CEZERO

LIABILI'I'Y GUARANTEE''for fraudulent and unauthorized transactions and the m rsonal

inform ationSecurityAv eementsthatBOA providesitscardholdeo areattnrhedasacomN ite

Exhibit%T ''

39. AsaresultofBOA'sfailuretohonorthecon% ctwiththePlaintiF,thePlaintiff

haslost$24;354.59.

W H EREFORE,PlaintiF,STEELE G RANTE,res- tfully requeststhisCourt

to enteraJudrnentagainstthe Defendant,BOA,fordam agessufered,costsofthislitigation,

attorney'sfees,interestand any otherreliefthisCourtdeem sappropriate,and demandstrialby

Jlll'y.

CO UNT IIL M GLIGENCE

j0. PlaintiFreamrmsandrealegespo graphs1-39aboveasthoughfulysetforth

herein.

41. Despitehaving received copiesoftheVerified ldentity 'Fheftreportsâom State

and Federal Law Enforcem ent Authorities stated above, the Defendant, BOA, refused to

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com pleteathorough investigation and verifythefraudulentchargesorcreditthechargesback to

Plaintic saccount.

42. Defendant BOA,failed in itsduty to manage the accountsecurely andproperly

and/orauthenticateanychargesbeingplacedontotheaccountawhichfacilitatedtheimm sterl's)

identitythe: andaccounttakeover.SeeTRW 1nc.v.Andrews.534 (2& 19(20012.

43. Defendant,BOA,failed in itsdutyprovideadequatesecurity on Plaintiffscredit

card accountand failed to properly authenticate a1ltm nsactionsthatwere made to theaccount

whichleadtoPlsintif ste eringmonetarydnm age.

44. Defendant,BOA,breached its fiduciary responsibility to protect its custom er

accountsby allowingathirdpartyto gain âaudulentaccesstoPlaintiœ sBOA VisaCreditCard

account.

45.

suspiciousactivity thusresulting in a breach ofthebank'ssecuritym easures,failing to prevent

theH udulenttransactions.

Defendant BOA failed to provide any notice to the Plaintil of unusual or

46. Defendant BOANA failed to provide suo cient security m eœstlres and/or

implem entprom rconkolsrequired by Federaland Statelawsand fellshortofthe ''D% onable

security''standatdanddutyofcare.

47. Plaintiffhad the rightto rely on BOA to investigate lossesdueto identity theA

andfraudulentelectronicfundskansfers.

48. AsaresultofBOA'snegligence,thePlaintiF hasamonetarylossof$24,354.59.

49. Defendant,BOA's,refusalto remedy its erroneousactionsdnm aged Plaintic s

credibility and subsequentability to obtain loansoradditionalcreditand caused him to suffer

mentalandemotionaldistress,andfinancialinjury.

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W HEREFORE,Plaintië STEELEGRANTE,resmctfulyrequeststhisCourttoenter

a Judm entagainstthe Defendant,BOA,fordnmagessuffered,m entaland em otionaldistress,

costsofthislitigation,attom ey'sfees,interestandanyotherreliefthisCourtdeem sappropriate,

anddemandstrialbyjury.

COUNT IV.W OLATION OF THE FM R CREDIT

REPORTING ACT.ISU.S.C.11681

50. PlaintiF reao rmsand reallegespn graphs 1-49 above asthough fully setforth

herein.

51. Defendant,BOA,persistsin IllegalCollection ActivitiesagainstPlaintiF,which

areSPECIFICALLY PROHIBITED BY THE FCM andwhichhavecontinuedonadailybasis.

52. PlaintiffreceivesAtleœst4 phonecalls,severaltextsandmanyem ailson adaily

basiswhich are harassing,deceptive and abusive and have caused Plaintiffto sufrerextensiye

mentalandem otionaldistress.

53. Defendant,BOA 's,illegal collection activities are ongoing, causing PlaintiF

extendedharms.

54. Inviolation ofn eFairCreditReportingAct 15U.S.C.j 1681,Defendnnt

BOA,continuedtoillegallyreporttheconfirm edfraudulentactivitywitha11threecreditbm eaus,

Experian,Equifax andTrnnqunion.

55. PlaintilcontactedtheFederalTradeCommission(RFTC''IandtheirEnforcement

Agency,theConsumerFinancialProtection BureauCECFPBD whoimmediately blockedthe

contlrmedandverified fraudulentaccountsfrom beingreportedfurtherbytheCreditBm eaus.

56. ltisDefendant,BOA's,duty,asafurnisherofinform ationto thecreditbureaus,

toprovideaccurateinform ationtothethreeCreditReportingAgencies,aswellmsBOA 'sdutyto

conduct'aninvestigationandcorrectreportingerrors.See15U.S.C.jj1681s-2(a),(b).

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$7* onM arch5*5 2020,18M onthsalertheFraudulenttrnnqactionswerereportedto

BOA,Defendant,BOA,made deductions 9om personaland business accounts held by the

PlaintiffatBOA intheamountof$6,300.38.Defendnntcommittedthisactionwhileknowing

thatthechargeswherepartofalargeidentitytheftandmultipleaccounttakeoversthathadbeen

rem rted to BOA 18 m onths earlier.This action catlsed reversals on pending charges in the

Plainti& saccountsaswellasadditionalextemeemotionaldistess.

58. Defendant'saforementionedconductviolatedtheFDCPA .

W HEREFO RE,PlaintiF,STEELE GRM TE,respectfullyrequeststM sCourttoenter

aJudgmentagainsttheDefendant,BOA,fordsm agessuffered,costsofthislitigation,attom ey's

fees,interest,andanyotherreliefthisCourtdeemsappropriate,anddemandstrialbyjury.

CO IJNT V.VIOLATIO N O F THE TRUTH IN LENDING ACT.

15U.S.C.1601-1667

59. Plaintiffream rmsandreallegesparagraplls1-58asthoughfullysetforthherein.

60. TheTruthinLendingAct(TILA),15U.S.C.1601-1667,wascreatedwiththe

pu> seofprotecting consumersfrom resm nsibility fortmauthorized charges,aswellasm any

otherprotectionsforcreditcardaccolmtholders.

61. n e FmudulentTransactions on Plaintitrs accotmtwere notauthorized by the

Plaintiff.

62. UponlenrningoftheFraudulentTranAactions,PlaintiF im mediatelynotifedBOA

ofthedisputedcharges.

63. BOA acknowledged receiving a valid dispute of the charges on Plaintic s

account;however,aformalinvestigationintothefraudulentchargeswasneverconcluded.

64. By acknowledging and accepting Plaintifrs dispute of the Fraudulent

Trsnqactions,issuing a creditfor those charges,and om ning a form al investigation of the

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formally disputed charges,BOA com pletely waived any applicable tim e lhnitation thatm ay

applytoPlaintiF inraisingaclnim ordisputingtheclmrges.

65. Itisoverwhelmingly in theinterestofpublicpolicy to allow Plaintif to raisethis

count as it is unconscionable to hold PlaintiF responsible for unauthorized, fraudulent

lansactionsthatweredisputedinatimelymnnnerupondiscoveryofthegaudulentcharges.

66. PlaintiF suFered damages by not Y ing reim bursed for the Fraudulent

Transactions.

W HEREFORE,Plaintië STEELE GRANTE,resm ctfulyrequeststhisCourttoenter

aJude entagainsttheDefendant,BOA,fordsm agessuFered,costsoftllislitigation,attorney's

fees,interest,andanyotherreliefthisCourtdeemsappropriate,anddemandstrialbyjury.

Res- tfullySubm itted,

@

SteeleG rante

1515N .FederalHighway,#300

BocaRaton,FL 33422

(561)210-4200

sg@omnimail.biz

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