The owner of a defunct collection agency that owes the state of Georgia nearly $500,000 now finds himself on the other end of the transaction, as a petition has been filed to force the owner to pay up.
Earnest Earvin IV, who was the owner of the now-defunct Zenith Financial Group, agreed to pay $460,000, in 2015 as part of an agreement after he was accused of violating Georgia’s Fair Business Practices Act by threatening individuals with being arrested or imprisoned in trying to force them to make payments. The agreement also included the forfeiture of $3.1 million in unpaid debts. Earvin agreed to make 36 payments of $416.66 and then a lump sum payment of $445,000 to cover his fine. The $445,000 payment would be waived if Earvin fully complied with the agreement.
But Earvin has only made eight payments and now Georgia’s attorney general wants Earvin to pay up.
The state sent Earvin a letter last year, asking why the payments had stopped being remitted. No response to the letter was ever received.
Georgia’s attorney general is seeking a judgment to recover the unpaid portion of the fine.
