Student loans usually classify as the two worst words in the English language for college graduates. They’re part of the trifecta of college graduation: Paying back student loans, finding a job, and having to actually become an adult. However, it seems as if student debt has reached a whole new level of terror, after one man was arrested for failing to pay a student loan from 29 years ago.
According to Refinery29, Paul Aker from Texas was arrested by seven federal marshals who entered his home in combat gear while also carrying automatic weapons. Aker was handcuffed and bought to a federal court for the student loan taken out in 1987.
“I just couldn’t believe that I was standing before the court, with no rights read to me, no legal representation, and I’d been told that I owed $1,500. I just couldn’t believe it,” he told Fox26.
CNN Money reports that with interest, Aker’s loan has grown to $5,700, which he has to start paying off in installments of $200 per month.
Well, this is pretty much every college kid’s worst nightmare. Luckily, this election’s presidential candidates have been talking quite a bit about reforming the higher education system so this kind of thing doesn’t happen. In a country where there’s $1.3 trillion in student loan debt and a lot of people confused about how to pay it off, hopefully those politicians can make their promises a reality.