Prosecutors have seized an additional $400,000 from a payment processing company that allegedly laundered money for a debt collector who is being investigated by federal authorities, according to a published report.
The money was seized from Market Street Debt Partners, which allegedly received payment information, processed payments, and transferred those funds — after deducting a service fee — into accounts owned by Mark Miller, who prosecutors are alleging engaged in illegal collection activities.
Prosecutors previously seized $90,000 from Miller’s residence and are accusing him of operating collection agencies that threatened individuals with criminal charges and jail time if they did not immediately pay off the debts in question. Collectors also allegedly threatened to file lawsuits seeking to reclaim more than what was owed and garnish disability wages, according to a published report.
An attorney representing Market Street Debt Partners denied any wrongdoing by the company, which is owned by Jacob Torriere and his brother Joseph.
“My clients are legitimate businessmen whose only role was to process payments from Mr. Miller’s companies,” said Herbert L. Greenman, the attorney representing Market Street. “The government has seized their money, but they were not involved with any bill collections done by Mr. Miller’s companies. They are being punished for things they had nothing to do with. I think this kind of action puts a chilling effect on legitimate payment processors.”
The processing company is being accused of failing to follow proper procedures and disregarding that Miller’s collection business utilized numerous bank accounts under various names and that money from the collection business was commingled with money from a roofing company owned by Miller.
