An astonishing story is coming out of Houston, where a man was just arrested at his home by federal marshals over $1,500 in outstanding student debt. Is Raylan Givens coming for you next?
Paul Aker told Fox 26 that he hadn’t received any paperwork regarding the overdue loan he took out in 1987, and was shocked when seven marshals appeared at his door last week with guns.
“I was wondering, why are you here,” he told Fox 26. “I am home, I haven’t done anything. It was totally mind-boggling.”
Aker says he was taken to a federal courthouse where he was forced to sign a payment plan to repay the loan. And, according to Congressman Gene Green, Aker isn’t alone. The federal government is employing private debt collectors to collect overdue student loans, who, in turn, obtain judgments in federal courts that allow them to request the use of the U.S. Marshals to collect payments. From Fox26:
Our reliable source with the US Marshal in Houston say Aker isn’t the first and won’t be the last.
They have to serve anywhere from 1200 to 1500 warrants to people who have failed to pay their federal student loans.
You can watch Aker’s news segment here.
Contact the author at Hillary@jezebel.com.
Image via Fox 26.