Landlordreferencing.co.uk – Forum

Hudson Obetoh

A convicted loan shark has been sentenced to two

years in prison after falling to pay back the cash he

had profited illegally.

Hudson Obetoh, 54 from Sutton Coldfield was

ordered to pay back the full amount he made

through the illegal business to the courts at a hearing

in June 2010. This totalled more than £163,000. He

was warned that failure to pay would leave him

facing a jail sentence.

However having paid back less than £7000, he

appeared again at Birmingham Magistrates Court in

January and was ordered to serve 726 days in

prison.

Obetoh ran ‘Cash Operators’ on Lozells Road in

Aston. When officers from the England Team

searched the business in September 2008, they

found loan agreements and payment records along

with a passport, computer, camera and MP3 player,

all of which belonged to Obetoh’s customers.A

subsequent search of his home found £6,500 in cash

as well as more items belonging to his customers

including passports, travel documents, computers

and jewellery.

Obetoh would confiscate his customers’ passports

as security for the loans. He would then charge them

£35 to take them out of the bank vault; despite the

fact they were just kept in his home. He even refused

to return one woman’s passport after she had repaid

her loan, as her husband had not yet paid off his

£1000 loan.

Obetoh was convicted of charges of deception,

acquiring criminal property in 2009 and given a 12

month suspended sentence for the first two offences

and a 22 week suspended sentence for the later,

along with a 200 hour community service order.

LETS SPREAD THE WORD AND GET THESE PEOPLE OFF THE STREETS

IF YOU WANT TO REPORT A LOAN SHARK YOU CAN DO SO SAFELY HERE

24/7 confidential hotline 0300 555 2222

SOURCE

Stop Loan Sharks National Newsletter part of Trading Standards my grateful thanks to Jacqui Kennedy of Birmingham City Council for making me aware of this national initiative

LETS SPREAD THE WORD AND GET THESE PEOPLE OFF THE STREETS

Alfie Bruce said
Hi Mary,

IF YOU WANT TO REPORT A LOAN SHARK YOU CAN DO SO SAFELY HERE

24/7 confidential hotline  0300 555 2222      

So what determines a loan shark?. Is it someone who lends money out a extortinate rates to those who really cant afford to borrow it in the first place,  or is it someone that lends money out a extortinate rates to those who really cant afford to borrow it in the first place and does not have a credit consumer licence.

Because the only thing I see that is different between Hudson Obetoh and all the other pay day loan companies that lend money out to people who cant afford it, is Mr Hudson unlike the chairman of wonga.com didn't have a smart corporate façade and a few mates who were politicians.

Surely lending money at any interest rate which represents a margin of over 1000% is loan sharking and if it is there are an awful lot that need to be reported on your confidential hotline

 

Alfie your point is well made but if a company has a licence to lend money they are not operating illegally – we might question the ethics of these organisations but they are operating within the law.  I think that it is the law that needs to be addressed and perhaps there needs to be a legal maximum interest rate?

The reason that I posted this discussion is to make people aware that there is a way out of the fear, a number that they can call to report those who are under the radar and who "send the boys around" when a person cannot repay their loan.  It makes me feel sick to think of how a person feels when they wake up every morning knowing that they will be under pressure to find money to pay these people. 

LRS is already giving Credit Unions support here http://www.landlordreferencing…..in-the-uk/so that people who are in financial trouble can go for help and advice.  Credit Unions are used to people walking through the door because they cannot deal with the pressure of an expensive loan and they are great at helping people to sort out their finances and move on BUT we NEED TO GET THE ILLEGAL LOAN SHARKS OFF OUR STREETS because people are often too afraid to go for help if they are dealing with these people.

 

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PaulBarrett said
I don't know whether it occurs but surely a useful POS display for CU could be at jobcentres.

They could even sign up there.

This could possibly prevent further demands on the benefit system.

Let's face it most people going to the jobcentre should really be a member of a CU.

I don't know why the govt does not allow the PO to set up a CU.

They are the ideal outlets and would also maintain local communities who are being deprived progressively of their PO.

 

Paul I would not want to see PO's becoming CU's because the staff that work with the members of the CU are key to their success and the staff who work for a PO have a different skill set. Also people who need to sit down and talk about their financial problems probably would not want to do so in the middle of a PO. Many CU's have small spaces in council buildings, neighbourhood offices, libraries, job centres etc and this is one of the things that I am pushing for in my area because access is key for tenants on modest income.

 

Follow me on Twitter @landlordtweets

FOR PEOPLE WHO DO NOT WANT TO MAKE THAT PHONE CALL YOU CAN  ALSO

                                                   TEXT

                                         LOAN SHARK to 60003