FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, February 10, 2016
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Announces Charges Against Owner Of, And Attorney For, $2 Billion Unlawful Internet Payday Lending Enterprise
Defendants Exploited Over 4.5 Million Financially Struggling Americans Through Unlawful Scheme to Evade State Usury Laws
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Karl Stiften, Special Agent-in-Charge of the St. Louis Field Office of the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”), and Diego Rodriguez, Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), announced the unsealing of a criminal indictment charging SCOTT TUCKER and TIMOTHY MUIR with violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (“RICO”) and the Truth in Lending Act (“TILA”) for operating a nationwide internet payday lending enterprise that systematically evaded state laws in order to charge illegal interest rates as high as 700% on loans. Both defendants were arrested in Kansas City, Kansas, earlier today and will be presented in the United States District Court for the District of Kansas. The case has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Katherine B. Forrest.
Mr. Bharara also announced a non-prosecution agreement (the “Agreement”) with two tribal corporations controlled by the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma, a Native American tribe. As part of the Agreement, the tribal corporations agree to forfeit $48 million in criminal proceeds from TUCKER’s payday lending enterprise that are currently held in tribal bank accounts. The Agreement also acknowledges, among other things, that a tribal representative filed false factual declarations in multiple state court actions. TUCKER and MUIR used these false declarations to defeat numerous state enforcement actions seeking to enjoin the operation of their unlawful business.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara stated: “As alleged, Scott Tucker and Timothy Muir targeted and exploited millions of struggling, everyday people by charging illegally high interest rates – as much as 700 percent. Tucker and Muir allegedly sought to evade liability by claiming that this $2 billion business was actually owned and operated by Native American tribes. But thanks to the investigative work of the FBI and IRS, this deceptive and predatory scheme to take advantage of the most financially vulnerable in our communities has been exposed for what it is – a criminal scheme.”
IRS Special Agent-in-Charge Karl Stiften stated: “These defendants allegedly used deceptive and misleading lending practices to prey on millions of hard working individuals seeking payday loans. In reality, these loan customers were taken advantage of and charged illegally high interest rates.”
FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Diego Rodriguez stated: “As alleged, Tucker and Muir deceptively preyed on more than 4.5 million working people, including those in New York, to enter into payday loans with interest rates ranging from 400 to 700 percent. Not only did their business model violate the Truth-in Lending Act, established to protect consumers from such loans, but they also tried to hide from prosecution by creating a fraudulent association with Native American Tribes to receive sovereign immunity. This scheme, like so many others who swindle innocent victims, only ends with an arrest by the FBI.”
As alleged in the Indictment[1] and described in the Agreement:
From at least 1997 until 2013, TUCKER engaged in the business of making small, short-term, high-interest, unsecured loans, commonly referred to as “payday loans,” through the Internet. TUCKER’s lending enterprise, which had approximately 600 employees based in Overland Park, Kansas, did business as Ameriloan, f/k/a Cash Advance; One Click Cash, f/k/a Preferred Cash Loans; United Cash Loans; US FastCash; 500 FastCash; Advantage Cash Services; and Star Cash Processing (the “Tucker Payday Lenders”). TUCKER, working with MUIR, an attorney for TUCKER’s payday lending businesses since 2006, routinely charged interest rates of 400% or 500%, and sometimes higher than 700%, using deceptive and misleading “disclosures” about the true cost of the loans. These loans were issued to more than 4.5 million working people throughout the United States, including hundreds of thousands of people in New York, many of whom were struggling to pay basic living expenses. Many of these loans were issued in states, including New York, with laws that expressly forbid lending at the exorbitant interest rates TUCKER charged.
Wednesday, February 10, 2016
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Announces Charges Against Owner Of, And Attorney For, $2 Billion Unlawful Internet Payday Lending Enterprise
Defendants Exploited Over 4.5 Million Financially Struggling Americans Through Unlawful Scheme to Evade State Usury Laws
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Karl Stiften, Special Agent-in-Charge of the St. Louis Field Office of the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”), and Diego Rodriguez, Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), announced the unsealing of a criminal indictment charging SCOTT TUCKER and TIMOTHY MUIR with violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (“RICO”) and the Truth in Lending Act (“TILA”) for operating a nationwide internet payday lending enterprise that systematically evaded state laws in order to charge illegal interest rates as high as 700% on loans. Both defendants were arrested in Kansas City, Kansas, earlier today and will be presented in the United States District Court for the District of Kansas. The case has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Katherine B. Forrest.
Mr. Bharara also announced a non-prosecution agreement (the “Agreement”) with two tribal corporations controlled by the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma, a Native American tribe. As part of the Agreement, the tribal corporations agree to forfeit $48 million in criminal proceeds from TUCKER’s payday lending enterprise that are currently held in tribal bank accounts. The Agreement also acknowledges, among other things, that a tribal representative filed false factual declarations in multiple state court actions. TUCKER and MUIR used these false declarations to defeat numerous state enforcement actions seeking to enjoin the operation of their unlawful business.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara stated: “As alleged, Scott Tucker and Timothy Muir targeted and exploited millions of struggling, everyday people by charging illegally high interest rates – as much as 700 percent. Tucker and Muir allegedly sought to evade liability by claiming that this $2 billion business was actually owned and operated by Native American tribes. But thanks to the investigative work of the FBI and IRS, this deceptive and predatory scheme to take advantage of the most financially vulnerable in our communities has been exposed for what it is – a criminal scheme.”
IRS Special Agent-in-Charge Karl Stiften stated: “These defendants allegedly used deceptive and misleading lending practices to prey on millions of hard working individuals seeking payday loans. In reality, these loan customers were taken advantage of and charged illegally high interest rates.”
FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Diego Rodriguez stated: “As alleged, Tucker and Muir deceptively preyed on more than 4.5 million working people, including those in New York, to enter into payday loans with interest rates ranging from 400 to 700 percent. Not only did their business model violate the Truth-in Lending Act, established to protect consumers from such loans, but they also tried to hide from prosecution by creating a fraudulent association with Native American Tribes to receive sovereign immunity. This scheme, like so many others who swindle innocent victims, only ends with an arrest by the FBI.”
As alleged in the Indictment[1] and described in the Agreement:
From at least 1997 until 2013, TUCKER engaged in the business of making small, short-term, high-interest, unsecured loans, commonly referred to as “payday loans,” through the Internet. TUCKER’s lending enterprise, which had approximately 600 employees based in Overland Park, Kansas, did business as Ameriloan, f/k/a Cash Advance; One Click Cash, f/k/a Preferred Cash Loans; United Cash Loans; US FastCash; 500 FastCash; Advantage Cash Services; and Star Cash Processing (the “Tucker Payday Lenders”). TUCKER, working with MUIR, an attorney for TUCKER’s payday lending businesses since 2006, routinely charged interest rates of 400% or 500%, and sometimes higher than 700%, using deceptive and misleading “disclosures” about the true cost of the loans. These loans were issued to more than 4.5 million working people throughout the United States, including hundreds of thousands of people in New York, many of whom were struggling to pay basic living expenses. Many of these loans were issued in states, including New York, with laws that expressly forbid lending at the exorbitant interest rates TUCKER charged.
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