Copper Theft Ring Arrested for Stealing Raw Copper from ASARCO

Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne has announced that a multi-million dollar copper theft ring has been broken up.

The Department of Public Safety began investigating the ring after a traffic stop of a semi-truck in September. The truck was carrying nearly $180,000 worth of raw copper stolen from the ASARCO mine in Hayden.

During the criminal investigation, DPS determined that several ASARCO employees helped steal the raw copper. Others drove the raw copper loads to heavy metal recyclers in both Arizona and California. The heavy metal recyclers would purchase the stolen copper from them at a fraction of the commodity price and then resell it to Chinese importers at a profit.

The defendants face 10 criminal counts including conspiracy, money laundering and theft involving nearly $10 million in stolen raw copper from ASARCO.

Horne and the FTC Warn About Affordable Care Act Scams

Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne and the Federal Trade Commission have issued a warning that scam artists are taking advantage of the publicity surrounding the US Supreme Court’s decision on the Affordable Care Act.

The FTC says scam artists claiming to work for the government call under the pretense that the Afordable Care Act  requires you to give them personal information. In some cases, the caller may ask for a bank routing number, credit card information, Social Secirity number or other personal data.

Remember that no government program ever requires you to give personal information over the telephone.

DIRECTV to Provide Consumer Refunds As Part of Deceptive Advertising Settlement

Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard and the attorneys general of 48 other states have settled an investigation involving DIRECTV. The states say that the sattellite TV provider engaged in deceptive and unfair sales practices.

DIRECTV customers who have unresolved complaints may be eligible for refunds. For information contact the Arizona Attorney General’s Office at 1-800-352-8431.

Teen Meth Use Drops 65 Percent

Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard announces a major achievement in Arizona’s fight against methamphetamine. The Arizona Criminal Justice Commission’s 2010 Youth Survey shows that youth methamphetamine use across the state declined by more than 65% between 2006 and 2010.

Goddard says the development of a coordinated effort that includes law enforcement, treatment and prevention is a key reason for the decline.

Arizona Joins Agreement with Visa, MasterCard

Arizona has joined 17 other states and the US Departnment of Justice in an antitrust settlement with Visa and MasterCard. The two credit card companies have agreed to change their rules to allow merchants to offer discounts, incentives, and information to consumers to encourage them to use less costly methods of payment, such as cash, check, debit or lower cost credit cards.

Merchants pay an acceptance fee every time they accept payment with a credit card. They pay higher acceptance fees for accepting reward cards which reward users with airline miles or cash rebates, among other things. The credit card companies’ current rules prohibit merchants from refusing to accept these cards or from encouraging consumers to use cards with lower acceptance fees. This will now change with the new agreement.

AG's Announce Deceptive Advertising Settlement with Dannon

Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard and 38 other Attorneys General have announced a $21 million settlement with The Dannon Company. Dannon has been accused of making unsubstantiated and unlawful marketing claims for Activia yogurt and DanActive dairy drinks.

The $21 million payment is the largest payment to date in a multistate settlement with a food producer.