Meth addicts top list of identity thieves

TACOMA, Wash., June 2 (UPI) -- Pierce County, Wash., police have found a 90-percent correlation between identity-theft cases and methamphetamine users.

"The thing that is somewhat unique to identity theft is that it requires an almost absurd amount of hours and focus, which methamphetamine users have in abundance," Mark Lindquist, team chief of the drug unit with the county prosecuting attorney, told ABC News. "We've seen methamphetamine users putting together papers that have been through shredders."

The wave of identity theft sweeping the area has prompted state and federal lawmakers to seek an investigation into its relationship to meth addiction.

"Having nationwide information and a better understanding of the growing problem will help lay the groundwork for a comprehensive solution," state Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., said at a recent news conference in Seattle to request a U.S. Justice Department investigation. "If we're going to be successful in curbing these crimes and keeping communities safe, we need a strategy to attack them at their roots."

U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., signed on to Cantwell's request.