Albuquerque Journal - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX

Hollywood's cloak-and-dagger world of industrial espionage and purloined trade secrets isn't typically associated with housing developments.

But Pulte Homes claims in a federal lawsuit that a top executive who was being laid off stole a highly confidential, $1 million Albuquerque market study and used it to create a similar report for a major competitor.

The lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court alleges that Lynn Galindo, a former area vice president based in Las Vegas, Nev., conspired with former subordinates and other employees to obtain the Albuquerque Operating Strategic Plan as she was negotiating her severance from Pulte.