Santa Monica Check Cashing Closed Following the Death of Owner, Chris Trigg, 47

He was a friend to the friendless and a banker to the unbanked. Christopher Trigg was also the married father of 2 young girls.

Trigg, 47, died on July 17th of an aggressive form of brain cancer. He had only been diagnosed in February, said one of his former employees. A memorial service was held in Calabasas on August 17, 2018. The store at 1705 Pico Blvd closed about 6 weeks later.

The family did not originally intend to go public with the sad news. But when the bank (Banco Popular) found out that Trigg had died, they closed the bank accounts.

These were specialized bank accounts for check cashing licensees. Their action forced the Trigg family to close both Santa Monica Check Cashing, and Chris' Check Cashing on 16th Street and Santa Monica Blvd. The latter store specialized in title loans on automobiles. It was also known as "Ten Minute Title Loans."

Signs on the doors of both businesses appeared in October, saying that they had closed, and instructing PO Box holders to have their mail forwarded to other addresses.

Customers remembered Trigg as a kind man who would go the extra mile to help people in need. "He was a loan shark but a loan shark with a heart," remembered one. "I can't open a bank account because I'm on Chex Systems, and once you're on, there's no way to get off. I don't know what I'm going to do now," he said.

Johnny Rocco, who runs Rocco's cheesecake next door to Santa Monica check cashing, said that "Chris Trigg was the kind of guy who would take a mother's check so she could buy milk for her children, without considering whether or not it would bounce. He always did the right thing, even when it was hard to do. He will be missed. But I know he's in a better place."