Rep. Susan Wismer got the Government Operations and Audit Committee to add the GOED/EB-5/SDRC scandal to its agenda at the last minute last week. The conversation centered around whether the committee should subpoena Joop Bollen, the head of SDRC Inc., the private firm that Bollen spun off from the public agency he ran for the state to manage EB-5 visa investments in South Dakota.
GOAC Chairman Senator Larry Tidemann (R-7/Brookings) is trying to find out whether Bollen is worth subpoenaing:
Tidemann, R-Brookings, said he met Tuesday with state Attorney General Marty Jackley.
Tidemann said he has asked Jackley to present a subpoena template to the Legislature’s committee on government operations and audit.
That could happen at the committee’s next meeting July 29.
...Tidemann said the goal of a briefing by Jackley will be to explain to the committee whether Bollen would provide any useful testimony if a subpoena is issued [Bob Mercer, "Legislative Inquiry on EB-5 Might Seek Subpoena," Rapid City Journal, 2014.06.21].
That Senator Tidemann would turn to Attorney General Jackley to tell the committee whether Bollen has any information worth hearing indicates some two key assumptions:
- AG Jackley has information from and about Bollen that he hasn't shared with the rest of us.
- AG Jackley has asked Bollen all the relevant questions and looked for all the relevant documents that would help the public understand what he and Richard Benda were up to as they tried to get EB-5 dollars for huge projects like Northern Beef Packers, the Hyperion refinery, and the Keystone XL pipeline.
#1 is quite possible. #2 seems far less likely. AG Jackley has demonstrated his less-than-keen interest in investigating Bollen's management of the EB-5 program, claiming that he has no business inquiring about a fundamentally federal program.
Chairman Tidemann and the Legislature should not feel bound by the Attorney General's lack of curiosity. Bollen was the central figure in the GOED/EB-5/SDRC scandal. If anyone can tell us what happened, he can. Even if he would appear under protest and plead the Fifth to every question Chairman Tidemann, Rep. Wismer, and the other members might pose, Bollen needs to get the message that he worked for the state and that he must answer to the state. GOAC and the public have a right to look Bollen in the eye, ask "What the heck were you and Benda doing?" and hear his response, for the record.
Don't wait for the translation, Larry: issue the subpoena.
Only in South Dakota can the corruption machine run amok and continue unabated. Where is "South Dakota Common Sense" now? Maybe the Governor should start an incentive program for journalists.
Journalism in SD? Hell no. They're all waiting for the political appointment for being good little boys and girls.
Rounds, Benda, Bollen and Jackley. Are there any doubts these are the key players? Obviously Benda gets a pass, the rest would have requested counsel long ago in a just SD.
I agree he should be subpoenaed to testify to the legislature. But writing up a subpoena and serving one are two different things. Do you suppose Bollen is hanging around SD waiting to accept service of process?
If they are going to subpoena him, they ought to also issue subpoenas to each and every registered corporation or LLC that Bollen is involved with and serve those on the agent of record for service of process - whoever that may be. Those subpoenas should direct that the business(es) designate a person with knowledge that Bollen possesses for purposes of testifying.
The bottom line is that the committee needs to issue multiple subpoenas, not just one.
This whole thing just smells. Tens of millions of dollars of investor money disappeared. Where did it go? Who ended up with it. South Dakota employees didn't get paid. South Dakota contractors didn't get paid. South Dakota taxpayers paid several million for local taxes and other things. Who made off with the big money? We know Bollen got a big chunk of it, but the GOP wants to sweep the whole thing under the rug, and the press doesn't want to ask the tough questions.
And what about the missing records from GOED?
If GOAC acted like a real legislative committee they would retain their own special prosecutor and give him full subpoena power.
Trusting Jackley to act on any aspect of a GOED investigation is pretty much like letting the fox guard the hen house. Jackley is too compromised and has proven that he is providing protection for Rounds and Daugaard.
A special prosecutor would likely issue a subpoena for Jackley.
I respect Susan Wismer's attempt to have GOED/EB-5 investigated, but the investigation has to be more aggressive and professional.
Larry Tidemann is waiting to be told by some high -ranking Republican leader what to do. He has not made an independent decision since he joined the Legislature.
They should have impounded all of Bollen's records by court order because they probably up and disappeared a long while ago.
Joop Bollen is cunning, calculating, and greedy. He has purchased property in rentals Dallas, TX, a condo in downtown Los Angeles, CA as well. He has single handedly made SD look like a bunch of gutless fools. When are you going to wake up and put this sad excuse of a con in jail? Want to know where the money is? It is cash, and sitting in a vault in one of his properties. James Park and his minion Austin from Hanul law used to make quarterly trips to Aberdeen to hand carry cash to him. Also check overseas bank accounts. Korea, Netherlands, and try banks in LA and Georgia too.
Roger's right: GOAC should be acting with much more independence from the executive branch, especially when we are talking about a scandal perpetrated by the executive branch.
Jane: got addresses on those rentals?
The Eb5 program "was a great success" according to Mike Rounds.
SD politics are not about what a candidate has done, said, or voted. It is about $$.
The Democratic Party and I hear you, Disgusted. Help us change that.
Has anyone seen the art contributions Joop Bollen made to Emory in Georgia? These are definitely not your flea market finds.....
Aegis of Hathor
Egyptian, Dynasty 25-26, ca. 760-526 B.C.
Bronze with inlay
2007.20.1
Gift of Joop Bollen
A gift from Joop Bollen, this mummy mask is a rare example of ancient Egyptian funerary art.
It has quotes from Bollen...“When you are collecting antiquities, you have to be knowledgeable. Peter’s advice gave me the confidence I needed to be able to identify authentic artifacts,” Bollen says. “When someone gives you good advice and does it in such an altruistic way, it makes you want to do something for them.”
How about giving the people of SD some good old honesty?
http://www.emory.edu/EMORY_MAGAZINE/issues/2013/winter/campaign/carlos.html
Here is a link for Jane's post.
go susan!!!!!!!!!!!! in the end we'll know, but not likely before your election.
The questions are simple. 1. During and upto the time Joop Bollen ran the SDIBI, was he an employee of the state or state university? Either way, during that time, did he receive from anyone in Hanul Law Firm, money of any amount? And in what form were the funds given? Let's Average $30k + x 12 applications per year over 3 years, = $1mil +. Did NSU or the governors office know about this kick back? Was this income reported to the IRS? How was he able to purchase ancient art on a state employees pay? The money timeline will solve this mystery - how did he get the money to spend?