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TALLAHASSEE, FL – Attorney General Bill McCollum today announced that his Economic Crimes Division has reached a settlement with two individuals and two companies formerly associated with a fraudulent debt elimination scheme. Thomas Spiller, his wife Linda Spiller, and two companies will pay $240,000 to the Attorney General’s Office which will hold the funds in escrow until victim restitution can be made available. The debt elimination scheme was orchestrated by a company called New Leaf Associates, LLC and victimized more than 2,000 individuals by claiming to offer phony debt elimination services for hefty fees.

Thomas Spiller, now a Pinellas County resident, served as national marketing director for New Leaf and, with other sales representatives, promised consumers that a supposed “legal administrative process” would eliminate credit card and student loan debt, with the credit scores of the victims to be improved in the process. As part of the marketing campaign, Spiller distributed flyers with deceptive marketing claims to attract customers. Victims paid thousands of dollars to “enroll” in nonexistent “programs.”

Many of the victims were originally attracted to the scheme by attending presentations advertised as sessions to recruit more sales agents to market the scheme. In marketing the program, Spiller touted supposed success cases which turned out to be people whose debts New Leaf paid with other clients’ enrollment fees. Spiller transferred proceeds of the scheme into annuities and with his wife, Linda, created a shell company to hide additional profits.

Under the settlement, the Spillers will pay $240,000 to the Attorney General’s Office to be placed in escrow for victim restitution. Thomas Spiller has also agreed to refrain from marketing certain consumer financial services, including any such services similar in nature to what he purported New Leaf would provide. The Attorney General’s Office will contact victims to determine their eligibility. If the Spillers do not comply with the terms of the settlement, the Attorney General’s Office may pursue enforcement of the consent judgments for $1.8 million and $1.2 million against Thomas and Linda, respectively.

The settlement with the Spillers is the largest of several settlements the Attorney General has reached with participants in the New Leaf scheme. Litigation is still being pursued against other perpetrators of the scheme.