Overview
- S&K Towing, which was sued Wednesday in federal court in Santa Ana, faces claims that it sold or disposed of protected service members’ cars without court approval as required by the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act.
- The complaint says the company handled as many as 148 vehicles from August 2020 to April 2025, many towed from Camp Pendleton, while lacking SCRA policies and failing to check the Pentagon’s status database.
- Prosecutors say a Camp Pendleton legal aid attorney warned S&K in May 2024 about the law, the manager replied, “We do this all the time,” and the company kept auctioning cars after that notice.
- Filed accounts describe cars registered to base barracks, owners who were deployed, and vehicles sold with uniforms, gear, or awards still inside, which left service members without transportation or personal items.
- Justice Department lawyers from the Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office are seeking damages, civil penalties, and court-ordered reforms, noting SCRA cases have returned more than $484 million to troops since 2011.