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Payday loan, phone scam victim issues warning for others

Posted at 8:55 PM, Sep 15, 2014
and last updated 2014-09-15 21:01:28-04

VAN BUREN COUNTY, Mich. -- Pamela Eldred says she took a phone call on Thursday from a man claiming she owed a debt.

The lifelong Paw Paw resident said this call came from out of the blue, and she wasn't sure if she owed anything.

The caller identified himself as Daniel Lewis with Philip Hopkins Law Firm in California. He had also left a couple of voice messages.

'Lewis' said he represents a payday loan company called CashNetUSA, and he told Eldred  she owes $300. If she didn't pay, she was told, court costs would be in the thousands of dollars, she said.

'Lewis' asked Eldred if she had a credit card, and she told him she had her husband's card.

"He goes, 'Can you use that? If you don't you're going to go to jail. We're going to call the police,'" Eldred said. She gave the caller her husband's debit card number.

For Eldred, this could have ended badly. She and her husband could have lost their money.

In this story, she explains the steps she took to avoid disaster, and the Paw Paw police offer advice on how to avoid becoming a victim.

Watch the video for more.