Debtmerica sued under Federal Civil RICO Statute

This article is part of our Pro Se Litigant series archives, case: Torres v. Torres – R.I.C.O. charges reviewed.

Reprinted with permission from www.newatchdogs.com

July 27, 2011 by New England Watchdogs

Debtmerica, LLC and Jesse E. Torres IV (aka Jesse Stockwell, Jesse E. Stockwell), its CEO and Founder, once again find themselves in yet another court battle, this time in a multi-million dollar civil lawsuit, which includes numerous Civil RICO claims. They are now fighting wars on two fronts, as the ongoing investigation into debt settlement companies’ false advertising and fraudulent fees by the New York Attorney Generals Office, where Debtmerica was subpoenaed, is also continuing at full speed.

On Thursday, July 21, 2011, a 36 page Verified Complaint along with 68 pages of exhibits, were filed in Massachusetts Superior Court of Barnstable County, containing 19 Counts against 4 Defendants. The Civil RICO Counts included Conspiracy, Coercion and Intentional Infliction of Emotional Harm. The Civil Counts start off with Conspiracy to Commit Fraud, Slander, Malicious Intent, and the long list goes on.

Of specific note is that one of the Plaintiffs, Jesse Torres III, is the father of Debtmerica’s Founder, Jesse Torres IV. When we asked “Dad” for comments on the Complaint, he would only state: “when you lie down with dogs, you get fleas”, referring to his son’s, Jesse IV’s, role in the Complaint, and that the Complaint speaks for itself. You can view the Complaint, Pleadings and Exhibits at http://plaintiff.jetiii.com³.

The Complaint alleges that Jesse Torres IV and Debtmerica are now associated with an ongoing criminal conspiracy that made over 30 extortion attempts against Jesse Torres III, and did so in two countries and three states, over a period of eleven years. The extortion attempts included life threats to be carried out by associates of the Conspiracy,Hells Angles, and continual acts of terror against the Plaintiffs forcing them to flee their waterfront home in Baja California, Mexico, and causing the Catastrophic Heart Failure of Jesse Torres IV’s father. The complaint states that the Heart Failure will statistically shorten his life by many years.

Additionally, the complaint alleges bad acts by Jesse Torres IV against his grandfather, who suffered from stage 5 Alzheimer’s, where he caused, or did not stop, his intoxication, to a point where his grandfather could not stand up he was so drunk. Jesse Torres IV did so even though he knew of the dangerous side effects that could be caused by mixing his grandfather’s prescribed drugs with alcohol. Further, it’s claimed his grandfather was molested while under Jesse Torres IV’s care and control . The complaint goes on to state that when questioned about these bad acts, Jesse Torres IV simply said, “it’s no big deal“.

After reviewing the Complaint, our conclusion is that the straw that broke the camel’s back and lead to the filing of the complaint, was when Jesse Torres IV coerced his grandmother, Sophie J. Torres, into breaching her contract with her son (Jesse Torres IV’s father) to repay monies owed him from her estate upon her death. Allegedly he accomplished this coercion of his grandmother by making her believe that he was going to cut off his financial assistance, as he had done in the past when she made a real estate decision he didn’t like.

The complaint states that these monies owed to his father amounted to over one-million-six-hundred-forty-thousand dollars ($1,640,000). While it is inconclusive at this time, if those monies were diverted to Jesse Torres IV, we will be following this closely as the discovery process uncovers the truth.

One exhibit that stood out above the rest was the document from the Baja California North, Mexico Attorney General’s Office. The formal complaint filed, and summons issued by them, was for the“Colonel”, James Kimberly Torres, a convicted felon (now deceased by his own hand), who was then a top member of the alleged international criminal conspiracy, and who was cousin of Jesse Torres IV. It leaves little doubt as to the seriousness of the charges and claims made in the complaint.

The Complaint reads more like an episode of the Sopranos than your run-of-the-mill corporate lawsuit. The question we ask ourselves is why the CEO of Debtmerica was, and still appears to be, associated with people of such questionable character as alleged and documented in the complaint? After carefully reviewing the exhibits and reading the complaint, we have to agree, the Complaint does appear to speak for itself, and the fleas certainly appear to be everywhere.

There are two questions that beg asking. First, will Debtmerica, if they lose this lawsuit, be able to survive, as the total damages claimed are in the millions of dollars? If not, what will happen to all of their clients and their client’s settlement agreements with their creditors? Second, if even a small number of the claims in the lawsuit are lost, will new clients trust Debtmerica, and even more importantly, will the companies that they negotiate with on behalf of their clients, trust them any longer?

While it is a fact that in the U.S. one is innocent until proven guilty, it is also true that our survival instincts do still come into play. No one can blame anyone for asking, why was Debtmerica subpoenaed by the New York Attorney General, and why did the Founder’s own father file such a lawsuit against his son? Lastly, the big question on everyone’s mind seems to be, “is Debtmerica the company I want to bet my financial future on”?

We will continue to follow this case and hope to have answers to these and the many questions that this complaint brings to the surface. Stay tuned, as we report new facts, right here at the US Watch Dogs, as soon as they become available.

Stay tuned for the next installment of this story where we will investigate the“Godfather” and the alleged head of the international criminal conspiracy, a resident of Mexico, Donald F. Torres, who is the great uncle and alleged mentor of Jesse Torres IV.

The full array of Court Documents are available at http://plaintiff.jetiii.com.

Update: The lower court’s decision by Judge Christopher J. Muse was overturned!

References:

1 Jesse E. Torres IV is now known as Jesse E. Stockwell on Debtmerica’s “Senior Management” webpage: http://debtmerica.com/senior-management. Yet, according to Corporation Wiki, the managing member of Debtmerica is listed as Jesse E. Torres:http://www.corporationwiki.com/California/Santa-Ana/debtmerica-llc/46989455.aspx

2 The New York State Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo Announces Nationwide Investigation Into Debt Settlement Industry : http://www.ag.ny.gov/press-release/new-york-state-attorney-general-andrew-m-cuomo-announces-nationwide-investigation-debt

3 Plaintiffs: Jesse E. Torres III, Jennifer J. Adams vs. Defendants: Sophie J. Torres, Jesse E. Torres IV, Debtmerica, LLC, Donald F. Torres: Massachusetts Civil Docket # BACV2011-00433: http://plaintiff.jetiii.com/