The Attorney General of Pennsylvania has finally ended its case against a collection agency and two half-brothers who were accused of using a fake courtroom to intimidate individuals into making payments, without any of the defendants paying any fines.
The case against Unicredit and Anthony Covatto, who was a vice president at the company and Michael Covatto, who was the company’s president, began back in 2010. The lawsuit filed by the attorney general at the time accused the company of using a fake courtroom in its offices to “pressure debtors into making payments.” The original lawsuit led to a judge shutting down the company in November 2010. The AG’s office continue to pursue civil claims against the Anthony and Michael Covatto.
A default judgment of $500,000 was entered against Michael Covatto in 2012, but the state was unable to collect on the debt and he ultimately ended up filing for bankruptcy protection.
In a settlement filed with the Erie County Court last week, Anthony Covatto agreed to be held liable for $25,000 in fines and costs, but the fines were suspended as long as he agreed with the other components of the settlement. Those components include not engaging in any type of business that uses a fake courtroom and not threatening individuals that they will be taken into police custody of have their property seized.
Five Attorneys General have worked on the case since it was originally filed, according to a published report.
