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| Monterrey CEO Juan Gaytan’s company lost its contract to protect the Minnesota Vikings’ stadium | Monterrey |
Trouble continues to grow for Monterrey Security, the Chicago-based company that provides guard services for the Cubs, Bears, Blackhawks, and major events like the Chicago Pride Parade and Chicago Marathon.
On Thursday, Monterrey lost a contract to protect the Buffalo Bills’ NFL stadium after New York regulators refused to issue the company a license to provide security services in the state.
“The Buffalo Bills have terminated our agreement after recently learning that [Monterrey’s] application for a security guard company license was denied by the New York State Division of Licensing Services,” the Bills said in a statement.
Regulators sent Monterrey a so-called “letter of proposed denial” on Monday, giving the company 35 days to challenge the decision.
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| A Monterrey Security agent searches fans at Soldier Field. | Bear Goggles |
The New York actions come less than a month after Monterrey lost its license to operate in Minnesota and lost its contract to protect the Minnesota Viking’s stadium in the Twin Cities.
An internal investigation in Minnesota found “hundreds and hundreds and hundreds” of Monterrey’s personnel were not adequately trained and licensed according to Richard Hodsdon, chairman of the Minnesota Private Detective and Protective Services Agency Board. The firm also double-billed the stadium and failed to conduct background checks, officials said.
“Our company has always been about second chances,” Monterrey said in a statement, “about hiring people from disadvantaged communities, and about protecting the people we have been hired to serve. We never hire people with a history of violence or sexual crimes or dangerous individuals.”
Among the guards provided by Monterrey in Minneapolis was Ricky Eugene Pouncil, who served 16 months in prison after he was convicted of trying to extort money from a 57-year-old man in a 2010 sexting conspiracy. The victim committed suicide as the blackmail attempts unfolded.
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| Monterrey “event staff” outside of Soldier Field | Monterrey |
This summer, a man was stabbed during a concert at Northerly Island’s Huntington Bank Pavillion where Monterrey was providing security services, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.
Chicago Park District General Counsel Tim King was said to be “demanding answers from Monterrey Security” after the incident. But whether he ever received those answers remains unclear.
“King questioned how anyone could manage to sneak a knife into a concert at Northerly Island when Monterrey Security guards are supposed to use metal-detector wands to screen concert-goers before they enter the popular venue,” the paper reported.
Back in Minnesota, federal authorities this week requested an opportunity to review Monterrey’s financials after a local investigation found “highly questionable billing practices.”
The report allegedly found that 200 terminated employees continued to show up on Monterrey’s invoices. The company reportedly billed more than 24 hours in a day for some workers.
“We are cleaning up a mess that could’ve been avoided if people had done their basic research and due diligence,” Minnesota State Rep. Sarah Anderson said.
