By Lacie Morrison
lmorrison@mineralwellsindex.com
PALO PINTO – While serving warrants on a Mineral Wells resident, law enforcement officers recently recovered identifying information on more than 200 people apparently stolen from a medical records storage facility.
Authorities believe they recovered the material before any identity theft occurred.
Terry Lynn Porter, 41, was arrested Oct. 29 by Palo Pinto County sheriff’s deputies at a residence in the 4400 block of Farm-to-Market Road 1195. According to Palo Pinto County Sheriff Ira Mercer, his officers had “some warrants to serve on him” and discovered a backpack containing identifying information that appeared to have come from the Gordon clinic.
Porter reportedly fled under the house, brandishing a pocketknife at the officers. Mercer said deputy Gary Morris followed Porter under the house and threatened to deploy a Taser on him. Pepper spray was also reportedly shot under the house. The suspect complied and was taken into custody, officials said. He was charged with two burglary warrants and a parole violation warrant.
The paperwork that was discovered with him, however, added an additional charge to the list. According to Mercer, the papers contained information on approximately 240 to 250 people.
“He had banking information, checking information,” he said, adding that all of the checks were written to the Gordon clinic in 2004. Mercer said they also discovered, birth certificates, fake driver’s licenses, fake currency in $20 and $50 denominations, real checks and fake Social Security cards, among other things.
“We think we got him shut down before he ever got started,” Mercer said. “We’ve contacted between 60 and 70 potential victims, mostly local people in Palo Pinto, Mingus, Strawn and Gordon. … To our knowledge, we don’t have any actual victims.”
In addition to the three warrants Porter was served with, he was also charged with fraudulent use/possession of identifying information of 50 or more items. Mercer explained the quantity of information is what made the charge a first-degree felony.
As to the source of the documents, Mercer said they believe it came from the recent burglary of Palo Pinto General Hospital’s off-site storage facility.
Mineral Wells Police Lt. Brad Belz said they were contacted on Oct. 31 by Morris regarding an arrest involving identity theft. After making contact with hospital officials about the potential burglary, officers went to the facility.
“They found the door was [shut] and secured with a single strand of wire,” Belz said.
PPGH Chief Executive Officer Harris Brooks confirmed they learned about the burglary from “other sources” and verified the building was broken into. The building, he said, has three doors.
“They were able to cut some cables and pry it open enough to [get] inside,” Brooks said.
He explained the hospital has to retain certain documents for set number of years, as determined by law, before they can be destroyed.
“We were able to shred thousands of pounds [of papers],” Brooks said, in a manner that was HIPA [Health Information Privacy Act] compliant. He said they now have a “much more manageable” amount of paperwork and can keep up-to-date on their shredding schedule.
As for the building’s security, Brooks declined to give specific measures taken but said, “I feel much more comfortable about it. It is much more secure now.”
Porter remained even more secure Wednesday inside the Palo Pinto County Jail with bonds totaling $120,000. No bond was set for his parole violation warrant.
