AUSTIN -- It's a rare fisherman who shifts from where the fish are biting, no matter how bad it might smell there.
So Texas retailers have discovered with state Attorney General Greg Abbott, who last Thursday announced his sixth suit in the past two months against stores who toss customer ID records into their backyard trash bins.
Abbott now claims his dumpster-diving investigators have found that Check 'n Go personal finance stores have tossed documents, mostly checks, holding names, addresses and social security card numbers. The stores are owned by El Paso-based CNG Financial Corp.
Abbott has already sued well-known names like Radio Shack, CVS and EZPAWN for failing to protect customer information after Abbott's investigators dug evidence out of company dumpsters.
The attorney general has sued Check 'n Go stores across Texas for violating the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA) and the Identity Theft Enforcement and Protection Act. Each violation caries maximum penalties of $20,000 and $50,000 respectively.
Earlier this month Abbott's bin-bombing brigade found enough evidence to sue several San Antonio EZPAWN stores for failing to securely destroy documents with information including drivers' license numbers, LegalNewsLine reported.
Abbott had earlier sued a San Antonio-area CVS Pharmacy on similar charges after a successful dumpster-dive by Abbott's crew. He has also sued a Corpus Christi-area store operated by Fort Worth electronics retailer Radio Shack after a similar score.
