Old network charged me 600+ for cancellation and device

I switched to att/ First net and was told my cancellation fee and device would be returned.

Huh?   What on Earth are you talking about. There's no such thing it hasn't been for several years. AT&T doesn't pay you to switch. And under no circumstances does AT&T send anything to your previous service provider. Not the phone, and not money. 

Anything that comes from AT&T is going to go to you specifically. Trade-in deal on your new phone which is paid out over 36 months as a bill credit. And you might get some kind of a deal for switching in the form of prepaid debit cards, or Bill credits on your bill. 

As for Sprint, You don't get to just walk away from one business when you owe the money and expect to not have to pay them. 

I recommend that you do pay them because just like AT&T and Verizon they will report your bad debt within 60 days when it's sent to collection. That will haunt your credit report for years and years. Typically drops the credit score by a couple of hundred points.

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