Andrew Shaevel has received 19 honors and awards from community organizations in and around Buffalo during the past 25 years for his support and fundraising efforts. He is also the founder of a company that has been accused by the New York Attorney General of buying and attempting to collect on phantom debts and working with collection agencies that engage in illegal tactics to attempt to collect payments.
The Buffalo News published an in-depth profile of Shaevel yesterday, attempting to get to the bottom of which Shaevel is the real Shaevel.
During an interview, Shaevel says he now regrets getting into debt buying with his firm, Hylan Asset Management. He says his company has never knowingly bought, sold, or attempted to collect on a debt that was fraudulent. But prosecutors allege that employees and associates warned Shaevel that there were problems with the accounts in the portfolios he was buying, but he continued to buy from those sources anyway.
Shaevel’s attorney pointed out in the article that the government has not indicated what percentage of accounts purchased by Hylan were fraudulent because the government is unable to determine that figure. The attorney and Shaevel said they are in talks with government attorneys in hopes of negotiating a settlement in the case. Until there is a settlement, Shaevel’s attorney said Hylan has agreed with prosecutors and stopped all buying, selling, and collection activities.
Business associates and friends of Shaevel said they were shocked to find him accused of any wrongdoing. According to the report, Shaevel was named Entrepreneur of the Year in 1998 by the Amherst Chamber of Commerce and his alma mater, Canisius College, named him a “distinguished alumni.” A few years ago, Shaevel’s name was placed on the “Wall of Fame” at the high school he attended.
