US Marshals say man wasn't just arrested because he didn't pay student loans

KRIV-TV’s Isiah Carey reported this week that the U.S. Marshals Service in Houston could be on the hunt for people who haven’t paid their federal student loans back.

A few people in Houston were likely starting to look over their shoulders.

Paul Aker of Houston told Carey that U.S. Marshals officials in combat gear with guns came to pick him up at his home on Feb. 11. He had received a federal student loan in 1987, he said, for $1,500 for schooling at Prairie View A&M University.

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Aker, Carey reported, later signed an agreement to repay the amount he owed on the 29-year-old loan plus interest totaling $5,700. He will also have to cover the tab for expenses related to the arrest.

The concept of armed federal agents coming to bust people for not paying back federal student loans is something that many would consider a waste of taxpayer's money.

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But according to the U.S. Marshals Service, there was a bit more to Aker’s story that wasn’t told on air.

According to the feds Aker had a warrant for his arrest and that he had been dodging them for some time.

The U.S. Marshals Service noted Tuesday that they have been given the responsibility for service of civil processes as directed by the federal court system. These civil processes can include summons for individuals to appear in court to address delinquent federal student loans.

"Since November 2012, U.S. Marshals had made several attempts to serve a show cause order to Paul Aker to appear in federal court, including searching at numerous known addresses. Marshals spoke with Aker by phone and requested he appear in court, but Aker refused. A federal judge then issued a warrant for Aker's arrest for failing to appear at a Dec. 14, 2012, hearing," the agency said in a statement Tuesday.

"It is the responsibility of the U.S. Marshals to serve civil processes at direction of the federal courts. These civil processes include summonses for individuals to appear in court to address delinquent federal loans, including student, agricultural and other loans made by federal agencies."

When officials made contact with him on Feb. 11, the U.S. Marshals said that they only sent two agents to his door. They say that when they attempted to arrest him, Aker resisted and retreated back into his home.

"The situation escalated when Aker verbally said to the deputies that he had a gun. After Aker made the statement that he was armed, in order to protect everyone involved, the deputies requested additional law enforcement assistance. Additional deputy marshals and local law enforcement officers responded to the scene. After approximately two hours, the law enforcement officers convinced Aker to peacefully exit his home, and he was arrested without further incident," the agency said in a statement.

The statement from the U.S. Marshals noted that here in Houston some 1,500 people have been identified for not appearing in court to address outstanding federal student loans.

These are likely extreme cases that have been drawn out for some time though. It's still recommended that debtors pay back their loans as quick as they can.

A judge has now issued warrants for the arrest of these people. Marshals say that every attempt is made to inform individuals of their initial summons before it comes to what Aker faced.

The Wall Street Journal reported last year during graduation season that 71 percent of college graduates getting bachelor’s degrees leave school with an average of $35,000 to their names in student loans.

Take a look at the Texas colleges with the highest levels of student loan debt. Take a look at the Texas colleges with the highest levels of student loan debt. Photo: AJ Reynolds, MBO Photo: AJ Reynolds, MBO Image 1 of / 41 Caption Close US Marshals say man wasn't just arrested because he didn't pay student loans 1 / 41 Back to Gallery

If you think that you might have outstanding student loan amounts somewhere out there, a good resource to confirm that is StudentLoans.gov. Be sure you have all your pertinent information on hand before you register for the website.