Vermont's huge eb-5 scandal is likely the tip of the iceberg

[cali]

I don't know if anything has been posted here about this, but it's a serious scandal. It was obvious to many, many of us in the Northeast Kingdom that this was an in your face ponzi scheme. We've been saying so for years. Meanwhile, despite how obviously ludicrous these developers claims were, virtually every pol in the state was carrying water for them. And in Vermont, all the top pols are dems. These two shysters gave big bucks to pols and to the Vermont democratic party. this is devastating to the area.


Even the snowy slopes of rural Vermont aren’t too remote for allegations of large-scale fraud.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has filed a civil lawsuit alleging a “massive eight-year fraudulent scheme” involving a series of real-estate developments by Jay Peak ski resort in Vermont and a federal program that offers green cards to foreign investors.

The complaint filed in federal court Tuesday alleges that the owner and chief executive of the resort “systematically looted” more than $50 million raised from dozens of foreign investors in what the agency called a Ponzi-like scheme. The SEC claims they used funds from newer investors to fill budget shortfalls in hotel and condo projects, as well as using investor money for personal gain.

<snip>

The lawsuit is hardly the first allegation of fraud involving the federal immigration program, known as EB-5. The program gives green cards to foreigners who invest $500,000 in businesses that are measured to have created 10 jobs per investor. Others cases have popped up in Chicago and California, and the SEC put EB-5 investigations on their priority list this year.

<snip>
http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2016/04/14/sec-suit-alleges-massive-ponzi-like-scheme-centered-near-vermont-ski-resort/#:NyYTybvQGh4tTA

[Dragonfli]

1. K&R

[thereismore]

2. cali lives! nt

[pnwmom]

3. According to this 2013 article, Leahy and Sanders helped EB-5 get passed by Congress.

Oops.

http://jaypeakresort.com/eb5-visa/in-the-news/when-a-ski-passion-leads-to-impressive-developments/

That $250-plus million in foreign investment pumped into Jay Peak proved just the ammunition that Senators Leahy and Bernie Sanders along with Congressman Peter Welch needed to help get the EB-5 program (set to expire in 2012) extended for three years.

[MADem]

5. This is bad news for the ENTIRE VT delegation and the governor as well--all Dems.

Sanders, Leahy and Welch w/Stenger....








http://www.newenglandskiindustry.com/viewstory.php?storyid=424

[MADem]

4. Every politician in VT knows these guys. UH OH....

?cb=1460748358

Left to right: Congressman Peter Welch, Bill Stenger, Sen. Patrick Leahy, Sen. Bernie Sanders, Gov. Peter Shumlin, Ariel Quiros and William Kelly in Newport in September 2012

Leahy's peers in Vermont's congressional delegation remained silent Thursday about the Northeast Kingdom collapse. Neither Sanders, who is running for the Democratic presidential nomination, nor Welch publicly commented on it. Both had participated in the September 2012 tour of Stenger's and Quiros' proposed projects, during which the photo of the men was taken.

For his part, Shumlin repeatedly noted at Thursday's Statehouse press conference that not only had EB-5 predated his time in office, but that Stenger's and Quiros' alleged fraud had begun "three years before I became governor." Shumlin, a Democrat, succeeded former Republican governor Jim Douglas in January 2011. The SEC says the scam began as early as June 2008, when the two bought Jay Peak using investor funds earmarked for other purposes.

Shumlin argued that his December 2014 decision to transfer state EB-5 oversight authority from the Agency of Commerce & Community Development to the Department of Financial Regulation prompted the investigation that led to the state's civil case. But by that time, the SEC had been investigating Stenger and Quiros for months — if not years. Shumlin said he was not responsible for the lax oversight regime that existed through most of his first four years in office. ....

Let the finger pointing begin--they're all either ducking the press or accusing their peers of being the ones responsible for this hot potato...~!

[pnwmom]

6. And Bernie's been ducking questions about this. I wonder why he hasn't been supporting

the reforms that Leahy's been proposing?


http://digital.vpr.net/post/bernie-sanders-wont-talk-about-alleged-corporate-corruption-his-home-state#stream/0

Bernie Sanders Won't Talk About Alleged Corporate Corruption In His Home State

Virtually every prominent Vermont politician condemned the alleged multimillion-dollar fraud in the Northeast Kingdom after federal authorities charged the developers last week, but Vermonters have yet to hear what Sen. Bernie Sanders thinks about it – or how he might vote on a key reform bill.

Sanders, a Democratic candidate for president, has been silent about the fraud allegations and the federal EB-5 program, even though he endorsed the EB-5-funded projects as an example of good government in the past.

Sen. Patrick Leahy said last week that he hopes Congress will help him pass a bill to reform the federal EB-5 program that allegedly allowed Jay Peak owner Ariel Quiros and CEO Bill Stenger to dupe hundreds of foreign investors out of millions of dollars.

Leahy said his bill would help prevent that kind of fraud, but Vermont's other senator hasn't weighed in about Leahy's bill or the fraud allegations that surfaced nearly a week ago.

After landing at the Burlington airport Tuesday evening, Sanders briefly addressed reporters about his loss in the New York primary, and he refused to answer any questions about the EB-5 issue.

SNIP

After seeing Sanders refuse to address the issue, Buxton took to Facebook to show her displeasure.

Sanders just asked by local reporter what he thinks of Leahy's EB5 reform plan and he says "Let me stay off that for now and focus on this election." Must be nice to be a big powerful Senator who picks and chooses which cases of fraud, greed, and ponzi-like schemes to rail against. I guess the ones that happen in your own back yard, using policies and programs you voted for aren't all that important? Looking forward to understanding how Bernie benefited from donations made from these crooks during his 2012 election. Bah!

[MADem]

7. Every country does this, and the price is pretty much the same

give or take a bit. It's wrong as hell, but Canada does it, Australia, pretty much anywhere you want to live, if you have the money, they have the entry papers. Remember when Russia (ugh) gave Gerard Depardieu citizenship when he was pissed off at Hollande for raising the taxes? Even Johnny Depp pulled up stakes and said "Fuck these taxes." The rich get richer...! And they stay that way, too.

I feel sorry for the investors, buying their green cards like good little rich people, and then finding they've been MADOFFED! They're probably thinking, shit, we should've gone to Canada instead!


I'm just kid of surprised that the guy who likes to play the Holier Than Thou card is mixed up in this at all. First, the F-35, and the drones, and the Sandia deal...and now this?

Politics as usual.

[pnwmom]

8. Yes, and he's a politician, not a saint. n/t

[MADem]

15. He sure is--and it's in for a penny, in for a pound.

He, and the rest of the VT delegation, as well as the governor, are going to have to work very hard to distance themselves from this ugly mess. All the finger-pointing isn't helping, either.

[cali]

16. Bernie's role in this is rather minor. Leahy's is not. Nor is Shumlin's.

[MADem]

17. They're all boosters and they've voted for this odious program.

He hasn't had his hand out, but at this point. that doesn't really matter.

If there are pictures (and there are), and they aren't all taken on the same day (and they aren't), he will be perceived as a booster. The fact that he hasn't taken ten grand over a decade from these bums won't make a diff, I don't think. More to the point, the fact that he's running away from making a statement is a problem, too, not that finger - pointing is any better.

If he could make it disappear, he would.

[pnwmom]

18. He sure was a booster. And he's swept up in it nonetheless.

If he was in the General this would haunt him the whole time.

[Dyedinthewoolliberal]

9. We have one if these cases here where I live

in Everett Washington- http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20160319/NEWS01/160318998

[cali]

10. My guess is there are many more of these assholes

[Dyedinthewoolliberal]

13. I don't see this as a black eye for Bernie

someone else is supposed to regulate this program right?

[pnwmom]

19. Leahy was trying to reform the system but Bernie has been refusing

to say what his position is on the reform. Why not answer questions like everyone else?

[Dyedinthewoolliberal]

20. I didn't know that

but I haven't been paying attention to those kind of things. It's probably a political strategy..........

[pnwmom]

23. Here is more.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1014&pid=1437599

[cali]

21. Sorry, you are not well informed. I am. Very. I live here.

If you want to inform yourself, go to vtdigger

[pnwmom]

22. You live there but I am actually reading the articles that you must be skipping.

Ever since the scandal broke, Bernie has been refusing to answer questions or to say whether he supports Leahy's reforms.

Here are two of the articles that report this. Where is your evidence that he HAS addressed the issues?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1014&pid=1437599

[hfojvt]

11. they are talking about the same thing

in South Dakota. Supposed to implicate the former Governor (now Senator)

[TexasTowelie]

12. I've been posting about this scandal for weeks in the Vermont Group.

http://democratsforever.freeforums.net/thread/6776/vermont-fraud-suspect-donor-democrats

http://democratsforever.freeforums.net/thread/6779/massive-fraud-scheme-uncovered-vermont

http://democratsforever.freeforums.net/thread/7226/feds-suspected-fraud-before-vermont

http://democratsforever.freeforums.net/thread/7235/shumlin-believes-jay-peak-prospects

[cali]

14. Thanks, TT!