Hi everyone, I’m in Texas and need some advice/support.
Someone I was in a relationship with coerced me into opening a credit card account in my name. He threatened to expose private photos of me to my job if I didn’t do it. He filled out the application himself using my name and info, but listed his own income. He told me I was just “co-signing” and that he would be responsible for paying it.
After the account was opened, he tried to make payments with a fake check, which bounced. Now the creditor is coming after me for the debt, since it’s in my name. I disputed it as fraud, but the dispute was denied. He stole the piece of jewelry the account was opened for.
From what I’ve read, Texas has something called a §521 Identity Theft Court Order, which can force creditors and credit bureaus to remove fraudulent accounts. I have filed a police report right now to document everything, but police basically told me they can’t prosecute and I should’ve known better. I found out that he is a professional scammer and there are multiple women in my area that have been scammed by him in a similar matter.
My questions are:
Has anyone here gone through the 521 court order process in Texas?
What should I expect when filing the police report?
Is it realistic that a judge would grant me the order given the circumstances (threats + fake check + false info on the application)?
Any advice, encouragement, or even just personal experiences would mean a lot. Thank you.
Location: Texas, USA