AUSTIN — Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed two additional lawsuits against businesses for alleged price gouging of gasoline during Hurricane Harvey.
The Attorney General’s Office has announced its suit against Big Willy’s in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex and Tejano Mart in Laredo for charging excessive prices for gasoline.
The current lawsuits come after Paxton filed a round of price gouging lawsuits in September and also sent notices of violations to 127 retailers who were accused of price gouging gas at their stations.
“Price gouging by unscrupulous profiteers is something that no Texan should have been confronted with during a declared disaster like Hurricane Harvey,” Paxton said in a news release. “Price gouging is illegal, unconscionable and completely opposite the spirit of cooperation we saw just about everywhere else in our state before, during and after the hurricane. My office will continue to aggressively investigate and prosecute more cases arising from Harvey.”
According to the Attorney General’s Office, Big Willy’s, with locations south/southwest of the Dallas-Fort Worth area, charged customers $3.99 and $4.99 per gallon for unleaded gasoline at different stations. Tejano Mart, in Laredo, acharged consumers up to $9.99 per gallon for unleaded regular gasoline, according to the lawsuit.