Scam Verizon contracts

Out of nowhere, my mother started receiving bills from Verizon for mobile services she never requested. Every single month, she calls Verizon to explain that she never signed any contracts. After she finally received a collection notice, she spent hours arguing with them over the phone.

After doing some digging, we discovered that a young man, G. P., opened several accounts in her name. There are no actual signatures on these contracts, and the copies of her ID look like they were pulled from a coal mine—completely blacked out, making it impossible to read the text or even see her photo. Essentially, he’s using the phones while she gets stuck with the bills.

Armed with this information, my mother went to the police to report the fraud. She attended a few hearings, though I don't know the specifics. In the midst of all this, a bill arrived from T-Mobile. This contract actually had a signature, but it was blatantly obvious it wasn't hers. Now things have taken a turn for the worse. She received an indictment where G. P. is suing her, claiming she made false accusations against him and that he actually gave her $8 $0.00 and she provided him with her ID to set up the accounts. She had to attend more hearings and was assigned a public defender.

And now, she just received a verdict finding her guilty. They claim she intentionally lied about not signing those two Verizon contracts just to dodge the bills, thereby filing a false report against G. P. So, she’s been convicted of making a false accusation. She isn't some hardened criminal trying to cover her tracks; she's just a homemaker with a completely clean record.

How is it possible for them to issue a verdict when she was never even called to trial or presented with any evidence against her? I am asking for your thoughts and advice on how to proceed.

So, I’m planning on filing an appeal against the ruling and demanding a formal handwriting expert to verify that signature. It’s obviously going to require hiring a lawyer to handle the whole mess.

vividraven26 said:So, I’m planning on filing an appeal against the ruling and demanding a formal handwriting expert to verify that signature. It’s obviously going to require hiring a lawyer to handle the whole mess.

Is this actually worth the cost? My mother was handed a two-year suspended sentence, $100 and given the fact that she is unemployed, has very limited income, and has no prior criminal record, I am uncertain if the legal fees justify the effort.

Honestly, you really need to go sit down with a lawyer and hash this out. If she’s actually guilty of filing a false police report, then we’re looking at a much bigger mess, because if she signed those contracts with AT&T, she’s also on the hook for any unpaid bills or whatever other shady financial nonsense he decides to pull later on.

vividraven26 said:Honestly, you really need to go sit down with a lawyer and hash this out. If she’s actually guilty of filing a false police report, then we’re looking at a much bigger mess, because if she signed those contracts with AT&T, she’s also on the hook for any unpaid bills or whatever other shady financial nonsense he decides to pull later on.

I don't think she's at fault. She isn't the type of person who would ever think that filing a false report would somehow help her dodge a bill. You’d have to be clinically unstable to even consider a scheme like that.

Look, if she actually got hit with a guilty verdict, then she’s gotta file an appeal if she wants any shot at being cleared, right? It’s pretty straightforward when you think about it.