The Colorado attorney general’s office has sued Colorado Springs-based Freedom Stores Inc. for violation of lending and consumer-protection laws.
by imposing unlawful interest rates and loan-collection practices.
Freedom Stores Inc. operates under the names Freedom Furniture & Electronics, Military Credit Services LLC and Freedom Acceptance Corp.
The stores target military customers by advertising “instant credit approval for all active duty military and civil service employees,” according to the attorney general’s office.
The lawsuit alleges that Freedom Stores repeatedly has violated Colorado law by charging excessive interest rates and fees on consumer loans and using improper collection practices, including illegally contacting commanding officers of service personnel regarding unpaid debts.
Freedom Stores CEO Leonard Melley Jr. could not be reached for comment immediately.
The attorney general’s office said the company was ordered to correct the violations after a 2012 examination but continued the same business practices.
The lawsuit seeks the refund of all loan finance charges and excess fees and seeks maximum fines and civil penalties for each violation.
“We will stop any company that seeks to take advantage of military service members and the chain of command to unjustly profit from illegal lending schemes,” state Attorney General Cynthia Coffman said in a statement.
following similar legal action by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the attorneys general of North Carolina and Virginia.
Steve Raabe: 303-954-1948, sraabe@denverpost.com or twitter.com/steveraabedp
