Corporate Background

Cobra Collections Agency is a collection agency that is owned, managed, and operated by Janice B. Ledden. The business is current based in Columbus, GA and has customers in the surrounding areas including Phenix City, AL.

Prior to Cobra Collections, Janice Ledden worked as General Manager for Credit Adjustment Bureau (CAB). She was also known as Janice Bass at that time. Credit Adjustment Bureau was owned and managed by Sarah Miller Bolt. It is my understanding that Sarah, after an extended illness, died of a heart attack sometime in 2005. Formally, CAB was registered with the State of Georgia Corporations as Credit Adjustment Bureau Group Inc. You can view their Certificate of Incorporation here. They were located at 4400 2nd Ave, Suite 8, Columbus, GA 31904.

Cobra Collections started as a sole proprietorship sometime in January 2005. Janice planned her transition from CAB to Cobra during December 2005. I was one of several clients who were notified ahead of time. According to Cobra Collections' Certificate of Incorporation, Cobra Collections was later incorporated on February 7, 2005 with the assistance of Richard Flowers, a Columbus, Georgia attorney. The company is listed on the State of Georgia Corporations database as Cobra Collections Inc. (Control #0511250) as a for-profit corporation. Their Registered Agent is Richard Flowers.

The original business address was: 3228 University Ave. Suite 109, Columbus, GA 31907. Their prior phone numbers were: 706.568.8800 and FAX: 706.568.8803. Buck Investments (landlord of the office space) informed me they had filed for a dispossessory warrant after Cobra Collections being 3 months behind. They clearly chose not to keep their existing phone numbers and elected to get new phone numbers.

They had moved their office to: 3500 University Ave. Columbus, GA 31907 during late February 2007. They were in Suite 4 in May 2007 but moved to Suite 3 in June 2007. There was one report that said they were in Suite 9 at some point but I believe it is inaccurate.

Last Known Contact Information (Updated: 6/27/07)

I suspect that Janice Ledden and Cobra Collection Agency will soon be "on the run". The most current contact information I have is listed here. If you have more current information, please contact me to update this.

Michael & Janice Ledden's Home Address (Updated: 6/27/07)

Now Unknown. They vacated their rental home around June 25, 2007. Home Phone: 706.565.4184 (We believe this will soon be deactivated.)

The last known email address I have on Janice Ledden is jbledden@yahoo.com.

Cobra Collections Office Has Shutdown (Updated: 6/15/07)

For all practical purposes, the Cobra Collections office has shut down. I believe this based on a combination of what I have observed and what has been reported in. WRBL seems to have confirmed this. The windows have been boarded from the inside. There are notices posted on the door from the landlord as well as an unpaid utility bill. People are reporting that no one is answering the phone. There is nearly no activity at Suite 4. The landlord has removed the road sign. There have been sightings of equipment being hauled off.

Two weeks ago, I predicted this might happen and I was right. I warned the community to not waste their time and energy looking for money because there would be none to find. Their only recourse for satisfaction are to look for criminal charges and prosecution. Restitution is totally out of the question as the amount of money taken would take a lifetime to repay. And of course, the reputational damage has been severe simply based on truthful reporting.

However, that does not mean there are no collection efforts happening. Remember, all anyone needs is a telephone to collect. I believe that Janice will continue to sqeeze what she can out of this before she clears out. The Cobra Collections office is now closed but I believe Janice is still operating.

Aside from Michael, there may be one other individual assisting them at this very low point.

Misleading Logo & Signage (Updated: 6/15/07)

Please note that her logo and signage shows that Janice is operating as "Cobra Collection Agency, Inc." While similar in name, that legal name is NOT the same as "Cobra Collections, Inc." that is listed in the Georgia Corporations database. Therefore, if you try to file a lawsuit against Cobra Collection Agency, Inc., you will be unsuccessful as there is no such corporate entity.

On June 10, 2007, the signage and logo sign was seen on Suite 3. They moved from Suite 4 into Suite 3 of 3500 University Ave.

Apparently, misrepresenting themselves with a non-existent corporation is acceptable to them. However, they appear to have shutdown. The landlord removed the road sign.

Lawsuit: Marie Sandoval vs. Cobra Collections, Inc. (Updated: 6/15/07)

It appears the lawsuits against Cobra Collections and Janice Ledden have begun. Look at what just surfaced on Google, the case of Marie Sandoval vs. Cobra Collections Inc.

Read the following documents: PACER Summary, the Complaint, and the Summons documents.

Please note that the main defendant is Cobra Collections, Inc. NOT Cobra Collection Agency, Inc. as their sign says. In addition to Janice Ledden, Brook Jones, Thomas Billingsly, and John Benjamin are defendants in the case.

The attorneys for Marie Sandoval is James M. Feagle (404.373.1970, email jimfeagle at aol dot com) and Kris K. Skaar (770.427.5600, krisskaar at aol dot com.) if you feel like you might be able to assist the plaintiff, Marie Sandoval.

I have been in contact with Marie Sandoval to let her know that she is not alone and made her aware of this website. I have been informed that some of the names on the summons are fictitious names. The true identity of "Thomas Billinglsley" is Harold Sanders, "Brook Jones" is Janice Ledden, "John Benjamin" is John Young. John Young also uses the alias "Tom Franklin".

A clerk from James Feagle's office called to confirm receipt of my email. I informed them of the alias names and directed them to this website for more information.

Six Ex-Employees Reveal Internal Operations (Updated: 6/20/07)

I was contacted by an ex-employee that wanted to share some crucial inside information with the public. I personally interviewed them at a local restaurant to collect their information. She along with her sister (K&F) want to remain anonymous at this time but have provided a substantial amount of information and even an internal report. I am sorting through the information at this time. Sis #1 worked with Janice in the Credit Adjustment Bureau days and worked at Cobra from Jan. 2005 to Apr. 2005. Sis #2 worked from Oct. 2005 to Apr. 2007.

They both reported that Cobra started issuing bad payroll checks sometime in 2006 and were often instructed to not cash the checks at local banks. They were encouraged to cash the checks at non-bank locations. These employees are unable to file for unemployment compensation because they were informed that Cobra Collections does not pay their payroll taxes.

Regarding payments from debtors, Cobra resorts to making unauthorized debit charges to checking accounts. Cobra also encourage people to pay with cash or with Western Union.

Cease & Desist orders are often ignored. In fact, when cease & desist orders came in, staff members are instructed to collect more aggressively so that there would be less to collect when the account was returned to the client.

Both sisters (K&F) described the deliberate misappropriation of funds. Some items that have been paid including Janice's plastic surgery, a trip to Hawaii, a motorcycle, and other personal extravagances.

"Camie" substantiated many of these alleged actions. However, it appears that Janice took "Camie" under her wing and personally trained her to perform certain tasks. "Camie" wishes to communicate to everyone her sorrow, regret, and apologies for her participation in some inappropriate actions. I hope she revisits with me again at a later date.

And yet another ex-employee, named "Ex-Employee #4" (who requested absolute anonymity) stepped forward today to provide me her opinion of who is remaining in the current Cobra Collections Team. She believes there are only 4 members left: Janice, Michael, John Young, and Jenny P. I was informed by 3 ex-employees that Jenny P. came from the Credit Adjustment Bureau days and knowingly supporting Janice to the end. Jenny P., if you are reading this, I recommend you find another job quickly or resign. It is not too late to get out.

Ex-Employee #5. "Jay" called to share what he saw were extravagant eBay transactions with PayPal payments through the Cobra checking account in the late 2005 timeframe. He estimated that there were $10,000-$20,000 worth of transactions paid with Paypal. Jay commented that seeing those transactions greatly troubled him. Jay commented that Michael and Janice would have occasional disputes regarding the handling of money. A warning was put to the staff to never discuss the checking account with Michael. Jay reported that Michael's brother who invested money in Cobra Collections was ultimately paid back. Jay provided commentary on how he felt Janice had melodramatic tendenices. These melodramatic tendencies have been substantiated by all the ex-employees.

Ex-Employee #6. "D" called me nearly 2 weeks ago and left me a voice mail and said she would call me back later. She finally called back tonight and we had a good conversation. I got additional confirmation on many of the allegations that were presented by many of the other employees. There was one ex-employee I particularly want to speak with that I hope she will put in a good word with. I am flattered that I have been able to win "D" over enough that we might have a 2nd conversation.

Ex-Employee #7. I know who I want #7 to be but I am willing to listen to any ex-employee.

I want to publicly acknowledge and thank each of them for their contribution to this website. They are among the unsung heroes whom I wish I could publicly thank. For now, I hope when they read this website, they have everyone's gratitude for their contributions even though most of you may not ever know what their true identities are. I am respecting every individual's request for privacy and anonymity.

Michael Ledden's Active Role in Cobra Collections (Updated: 6/8/07)

Up until recently, I have been uncertain as to Michael Ledden's role in Cobra Collections. When Janice allegedly suffered a nervous breakdown sometime in late 2005/early 2006 timeframe, I met with Michael himself during those friendlier times and he told me how he was doing his best to turn things around within Cobra Collections. Nevertheless, I still had reservations about how much he knew about Janice's inappropriate and illegal machinations or participated in them. Call it my sense of "giving the benefit of the doubt".

Unfortunately for him, all four ex-employees have come forward and unanimously state that Michael is an active and willing participant of most, if not all, of the financial manipulation, deception, and illegal machinations within Cobra Collections. I do not believe that all four employees who worked during various periods of Cobra Collections history are fabricating stories.

As such, I now believe Michael Ledden is an active participant of the overall Cobra Collection scam and just as guilty as Janice of most (if not all) of the accusations being brought against Janice. As far as I can tell, Michael does not have the extensive "colorful" history that Janice has. I have been told that Michael comes from Albany, GA. This appears to be sustantiated by my recent conversation with his brother "S" who also lives in Albany, GA. Loyalty to his wife is commendable in most circumstances, but not if it involves criminal and unethical actions.

Cobra Collector with a Criminal Background (Updated: 6/20/07)

An associate of an ex-employee brought this criminal record to my attention. According to ex-employees, John B. Young apparently goes by aliases within Cobra Collections such as Tom Franklin and John Benjamin. Debtors have confirmed those names. John Young had been described to me as a tall black male that had a criminal record relating to drugs. I understand he is on probation currently. He is not too smart for getting into this mess with Janice. He appears to have stuck by her to the bitter end.

Previously, I had not found anyone named John Young in my earlier search that matched that description and yet here it is. I obviously made a search error. This person appears to be that man that works in Cobra Collections with Janice and Michael. I am quite certain that Mr. Young would have valuable inside information if he is willing to step forward. Once again, I thank your community members for stepping forward with valuable information.

Jerry Bolt Opens His Files on Janice Ledden (Updated: 6/4/07)

Jerry Bolt, widowed husband of Sarah Miller Bolt (owner of defunct Credit Adjustment Bureau), has been in contact with me. He appears to have extensive first-hand information in many areas. He knew Janice personally and last saw her in 2005. He has been instrumental in providing some key information on this website. I thank him for his contributions and the large pieces of information and crucial leads he has provided.

Jerry's research has led me to discover Janice's true (and perhaps complete) identity and her extensive Bankrupcty filings.

Jerry issued a Warning Letter on November 1, 2005 to Whom It May Concern.

Jerry shares a letter he received on November 10, 2005 by the State of Georgia, Governor's Office of Consumer Affairs.