Stephen Colahan

Stories about debt collection agency owners overstepping their bounds on remittances are rare enough to warrant attention, but common enough to not be shocking. In a story this week, a Massachusetts ARM president was indicted in that state for allegedly dipping into an account meant for his client, the City of Boston ("Collection Agency Head Indicted for Alleged Theft of $2.7 Million From City of Boston," May 6).

While the story is interesting on its face, the comments on the story offered up by insideARM readers were quite compelling. Several readers pointed out that Colahan may have been a victim of slow remuneration from his client. Or he may have toggled between gross remit and net remit.

Perspectives like this can come only from seasoned ARM industry professionals. While it’s clear that Colahan did something wrong (grand jury indictments are tough to shake), there is another side of the story. And we appreciate our readers for filling in the blanks when the other side is unavailable for comment in the original reporting.