Date: February 28, 2012
Author: Jeff German and Francis McCabe
URL: http://www.lvrj.com/news/grand-jury-set-to-hear-from-witnesses-in-whittemore-probe-140806923.html
Grand jury to hear witnesses in Whittemore probe
------------------------------------------------
Federal prosecutors were poised to call witnesses today to a Reno
grand jury investigating allegations political power broker Harvey
Whittemore funneled tens of thousands of dollars in illegal campaign
contributions to Nevada federal races. The grand jury proceeding,
which by law is secret, is the next phase of the high-profile
investigation into the campaign activities of Whittemore, an
influential lobbyist who befriended many in the state's political
hierarchy. Two dozen or more witnesses have been subpoenaed to the
grand jury, sources said.
FBI agents fanned out across Nevada on Feb. 9 to serve subpoenas on
Whittemore business associates, family members and employees. Federal
authorities are investigating whether Whittemore used his employees
and family members as conduits to help him spread campaign money to
federal candidates as far back as 2007, the Las Vegas Review-Journal
has reported. The FBI views conduit contributions as a way to skirt
federal campaign finance laws that put ceilings on how much
individuals can contribute to candidates.
Whittemore issued an initial statement three weeks ago through a Las
Vegas law firm spokeswoman, saying the FBI's interest in him was
'based on reckless accusations' from his former business partners in a
civil lawsuit. Since then, however, the Whittemore camp has shied away
from commenting on the investigation. Allegations surfaced that
employees of Whittemore's former development company, Wingfield Nevada
Group Holding Co., and its subsidiaries contributed to the campaigns
and were reimbursed by Whittemore with company money the same day or
the next day.
The grand jury subpoenas sought documents related to campaign
contributions they made and copies of checks to and from the
politically connected lobbyist dating to January 2007. Contributions
made on one date -- March 31, 2007 -- to U.S. Sen. Harry Reid's
re-election campaign have attracted the interest of FBI agents. On
that day, the Democratic majority leader's campaign received at least
$133,400 from 29 Whittemore associates, including his family members
and his employees and their spouses, most of whom each contributed the
maximum allowed $4,600, according to federal campaign reports. Many of
those people, some of whom have declined to comment when contacted by
the Review-Journal, were expected to be among those summoned to the
grand jury.
Whittemore and his wife, Annette, also contributed $9,200 on March 31,
2007, bringing the total money bundled by Whittemore to at least
$142,600. Their contributions, however, are not likely to be
considered conduit contributions. A conduit campaign scheme involving
current and former top officials with the Fiesta Bowl in Arizona is
providing insight into how the Whittemore investigation may be
unfolding in Nevada.
Natalie Wisneski, the Fiesta Bowl's former chief operating officer, is
set to plead guilty in the scheme in an Arizona federal court on March
14. She is alleged to have used her position to reimburse bowl
employees for contributions made to state and federal candidates in
Arizona, including the presidential campaign of Republican Sen. John
McCain. The bowl's former CEO, John Junker, and two others pleaded
guilty to state charges in the scheme last week. An Arizona federal
grand jury returned a nine-count indictment against Wisneski in
November that included charges of making campaign contributions in the
name of another and causing false statements to be made to the Federal
Election Commission.
The charges fall under the Federal Election Campaign Act, which
regulates the financial activities of candidates for federal office
and the political action committees on their behalf. Federal
prosecutors here are likely looking at similar charges in the
Whittemore investigation. Nevada law enforcement agencies are not
participating in the federal probe, which is an indication
Whittemore's contributions in state races have not come under scrutiny.
In recent years Whittemore, who considered Reid among his closest
friends, had turned his attention to land development. At the time of
his big push to donate money to Reid's campaign, Whittemore was
orchestrating the development of Coyote Springs, a master-planned
community in Southern Nevada. With the help of Reid and other members
of the Nevada congressional delegation, Whittemore sought to overcome
several governmental hurdles because of county water issues and
federal land issues. But in 2008, the 43,000-acre development stalled
because of the housing crash and economic recession.
The forerunner to the federal investigation was a multimillion-dollar
lawsuit Whittemore's former business partners filed in Las Vegas,
alleging Whittemore embezzled $44 million from the Wingfield Nevada
Group. The company is controlled by Thomas Seeno and Albert Seeno Jr.,
two brothers who partnered with Whittemore in his master-planned
communities in Northern and Southern Nevada, including the languishing
Coyote Springs community. Whittemore responded with his own $60
million lawsuit in Reno federal court against the Seenos, accusing
them of racketeering, extortion and defrauding him through their
partnership. The Seenos say they have a 'confession' by Whittemore
where he admits to using company money to support his lavish lifestyle
and maintain his political connections.
On Friday, Whittemore filed court papers in the federal lawsuit
opposing a move by the Seenos to have the federal case joined to their
case in Clark County District Court. In an affidavit, Whittemore said
he 'never' made a confession, but 'at the direction of the Seenos, and
under threat of death and/or bodily injury, I prepared two agendas as
talking points for meetings with the Seenos.' Whittemore said he
planned on refuting the 'agenda items' he viewed as accusations made
by the Seenos. 'Nowhere did I admit to committing any crime or fraud,'
Whittemore said in the affidavit.
--------
(c) 2012 Stephens Media LLC
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Source: Las Vegas Review-Journal
Date: February 29, 2012
Author: Jeff German and Francis McCabe
URL: http://www.lvrj.com/news/prosecutors-present-whittemore-case-to-federal-grand-jury-140913023.html
Prosecutors present Whittemore case to grand jury
-------------------------------------------------
Prosecutors began presenting their criminal case against longtime
lobbyist Harvey Whittemore to a federal grand jury in Reno on
Wednesday. The FBI has been investigating allegations the political
power broker funneled tens of thousands of dollars in illegal campaign
contributions to Nevada federal races. He is alleged to have used his
employees and family members as conduits to help him distribute
campaign money as far back as 2007.
Contributions made on one date - March 31, 2007 - to the re-election
campaign of U.S. Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., have attracted the interest
of FBI agents, the Las Vegas Review-Journal first reported. On that
day, the Senate majority leader's campaign received at least $133,400
from 29 Whittemore associates, including his family members and his
employees and their spouses, most of whom each contributed the maximum
allowed $4,600, according to federal campaign reports. The Reno
Gazette-Journal reported on Wednesday that about a dozen witnesses
appeared before the grand jury. Most of the witnesses wouldn't comment
or provide their names on the way out of the grand jury room.
Two of the witnesses were Cathy Dangler, a special events promoter,
and her husband, J.L. 'Skylo' Dangler, the former president of a real
estate company once linked to Whittemore, the newspaper reported. The
Danglers were among those who contributed to Reid's campaign on March
31, 2007. The couple donated $9,200. Attempts by the Review-Journal to
contact Cathy Dangler were unsuccessful. Neither her husband nor her
Reno lawyer, Doug Fermoile, returned calls. Conduit contributions are
illegal under federal law and viewed as a way to skirt campaign
finance statutes that put ceilings on how much individuals can
contribute to candidates.
FBI agents served grand jury subpoenas Feb. 9 on Whittemore business
associates, family members and employees in Northern and Southern
Nevada. More than two dozen witnesses have been summoned to the grand
jury, sources said. Allegations surfaced that employees of
Whittemore's former development company, Wingfield Nevada Group
Holding Co., and its subsidiaries contributed to the campaigns and
were reimbursed by Whittemore with company money the same day or the
next day. The grand jury subpoenas sought documents related to
campaign contributions they made and copies of checks to and from the
politically connected lobbyist dating to January 2007.
Whittemore, who has many friends in Nevada's political hierarchy, has
denied wrongdoing. Elizabeth Trosper, a spokeswoman for Whittemore,
his defense lawyer Dominic Gentile and his law firm, Gordon Silver,
declined to comment on Wednesday.
First Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven Myhre, who questioned the
witnesses behind closed doors, also declined comment. The
Review-Journal has previously reported that Myhre's name appeared on
the grand jury subpoenas. A conduit campaign scheme involving current
and former top officials with the Fiesta Bowl in Arizona is providing
insight into how the Whittemore investigation may be unfolding in
Nevada. Natalie Wisneski, the Fiesta Bowl's former chief operating
officer, is set to plead guilty in the scheme in an Arizona federal
court on March 14. She is alleged to have used her position to
reimburse Fiesta Bowl employees for contributions made to state and
federal candidates in Arizona. The bowl's former CEO, John Junker, and
two others pleaded guilty to state charges in the scheme last week.
Wisneski is charged in a federal indictment with making campaign
contributions in the name of another and causing false statements to
be made to the Federal Election Commission.
The charges fall under the Federal Election Campaign Act, which
regulates the financial activities of candidates for federal office
and the political action committees on their behalf. Federal
prosecutors here are likely looking at similar charges in the
Whittemore investigation.
--------
(c) 2012 Stephens Media LLC
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Source: Reno Gazette Journal
Date: February 29, 2012
URL: http://www.rgj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2012120229022
Federal grand jury in Reno hears testimony in probe into Harvey
Whittemore campaign contributions
---------------------------------------------------------------
At least two of the witnesses who appeared Wednesday before a federal
grand jury hearing testimony about lobbyist Harvey Whittemore's
campaign contribution activities each gave $4,600 to Senate Majority
Leader Harry Reid on a single day in 2007. About two dozen Whittemore
associates contributed more than $120,000 to Reid's campaign on March
31, 2007, according to a campaign contribution report compiled by the
Washington D.C.-based Center for Responsive Politics.
The FBI served about 30 Whittemore former employees with subpoenas
earlier this month and called them to appear before the federal grand
jury gathered at the Bruce R. Thompson U.S. Courthouse in Reno. The
FBI was investigating whether Whittemore used friends and employees to
funnel campaign contributions to certain candidates. After reports
about the FBI investigation surfaced, Reid and a list of other
politicians announced that they were disposing of or giving away all
Whittemore contributions.
Cathy Dangler and her husband, J.L. 'Skylo' Dangler testified before
the grand jury on Wednesday afternoon. Both had made two $2,300
contributions to Reid in March 2007. The Danglers were among about a
dozen who appeared before the grand jury through the day, some with
their lawyers. Most decline to comment after their appearance. Skylo
Dangler entered the grand jury room pulling a small suitcase on wheels
behind him. Dangler used to work for Whittemore at the Resort at Red
Hawk and Wingfield Springs Realty. Dangler is now with with Sky West
Brokerage Inc., according to Reno Gazette-Journal archives. Dangler
declined to talk with the Reno Gazette-Journal after his testimony.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Steve Myhre, based in Las Vegas, spent much of
the day in the grand jury room, and would not say whether they were
hearing the Whittemore case. Federal grand jury proceedings are
secret. Myhre's name was on the FBI subpoenas, according to media
reports.
When asked at the noon lunch break whether he expected to finish the
testimony on Wednesday, Myhre said: 'We'll go however long we can go.'
At the end of the day, Myhre said they were done for the day but would
not say whether they had completed testimony in the case. The federal
grand jury only meets on Wednesdays in Reno.
Reno lawyer Doug Fermoile arrived just after noon with his client,
Cathy Dangler, but both declined to discuss the case. 'I still don't
know what it's about,' Cathy Dangler said before heading into a side
room for a meeting with with the prosecutor. 'Nobody has told me.' She
declined to talk to a reporter after she testified, on advice of her
lawyer.
Reno lawyer John Arrascada arrived at the courthouse in the afternoon
and escorted several witnesses into the grand jury room. When asked
how many people he represented, he declined to say. He also would not
talk about the case or how long the process was expected to take.
Whittemore is at the heart of a list of legal battles. His former
partners in the Wingfield Nevada Group, Tom and Albert Seeno Jr.,
filed a lawsuit in state court in January accusing him of embezzling
company funds. Whittemore responded with a lawsuit in federal court
accusing the Seenos of racketeering.
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4:10 p.m. update: Two of the witnesses who testified before the grand
jury this afternoon both gave $4,600 contributions to Senate Majority
Leader Harry Reid on March 31, 2007, according to data collected by
the Center for Responsive Politics.
Cathy and J.L. Skylo Dangler testified before the grand jury this
afternoon, but declined to comment on the hearing. Skylo Dangler went
into the grand jury room pulling a small suitcase on wheels.
The grand jury is hearing testimony concerning an FBI investigation
into Harvey Whittemore's campaign contribution activities. The
investigation was looking into whether he funneled money to candidates
through his associates and friends.
Skylo Danger worked for Whittemore at Coyote Springs and at Wingfield
Springs Realty.
On that day in 2007, about two dozen Whittemore associates contributed
more than $117,000 to Reid's campaign.
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2:50 p.m. update: Many of the witnesses who arrived at the Reno
federal courthouse this afternoon to appear before a grand jury
looking into Harvey Whittemore campaign contributions were represented
by a lawyer.
Reno lawyer John Arrascada arrived in the afternoon and escorted about
five witnesses into the grand jury room. Arrascada declined to say how
many witnesses he represented. He also would not talk about the case
or how long the process was expected to take.
Six witnesses streamed into the jury room after the noon break. A few
carried piles of papers and one man walked in pulling a small suitcase
on wheels. None of the witnesses would talk about why they were there.
--------
(c) 2012 Reno Gazette Journal
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