Ah, the HOA movement has some pretty sneaky moves in some parts of the country. The Times-Picayune column linked below talks about how homeowners get together to form a neighborhood crime district in Baton Rouge. Theoretically, they hire an unneeded security guard or two, then BAM! They’re suddenly in a Homeowners Association.
Pay special attention to this guy’s third paragraph.
(link to Times-Picayune article on crime districts)
Since 2007 newspapers and TV stations around the country have been collapsing. Newspapers like the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, the Rocky Mountain News and many others have simply gone out of business. But I’m learning that the Las Vegas Review-Journal is thinking about growing and creating a new investigative team. As far as I’m concerned that’s incredibly good news.
Without the investigative reporting of staff member Jeff German this country would know nothing about the massive Las Vegas HOA scandal that sent more than three dozen people, including lawyers, cops and public officials to prison.
More investigative reporting? Praise the Lord!
(link to Review-Journal’s plan to increase investigative reporting staff)
It seems like all the weird stuff happens in Vegas.
People in the Spring Valley Homeowners Association are outraged after someone sent out letters, supposedly from the HOA’s law firm asking owners not to rent or sell their homes to Blacks, Orientals, Jews.
Obviously, such a letter wasn’t sent out by an HOA. It’s just an idiot sending out a hate letter meant to provoke.
On the other hand, that’s nearly identical to the verbiage in tens of millions of real estate deeds in HOAs all across America. It’s nearly impossible to get that old language taken out of property records. Our history haunts us, doesn’t it?
(link to KNTV story about racist letter)
Rumors are that the mastermind of the 60 million dollar Las Vegas HOA scam has reported for his federal prison sentence. I’ve long predicted that Leon Benzer would never, ever report to federal prison. He knows how to get in and out of Mexico. He once owned a tequila company there. With a 15 1/2 year prison sentence would he not be tempted to cross the border?
I’m still not giving up my suspicion that Benzer will retire to a Mexican beach. He’ll only serve half his prison time, anyway, so maybe he actually will show up. And the white collar criminals I’ve known have absolutely loved their time in prison. They’re worshiped as heroes behind bars. Of course, Benzer knows that. But we’ll see.
And yes, I’ll admit it if my prediction was wrong.
I’ve been in the news business for 40 years and I’ve seen so many goofy things happen. Nothing surprises me anymore.
Yes, police investigators need to ask for lighter prison sentences for informants. But they have an overwhelming obligation to protect the public. That’s their primary job. When the number two player in a 60 million dollar scam victimizing Las Vegas homeowners agrees to cooperate with investigators, does that mean he gets off scott-free? Apparently in Las Vegas that’s exactly what it means. Ralph Priola could have been sentenced to 22 years. But federal prosecutors say he deserves no prison time. NONE!
Remember, Priola didn’t voluntarily cooperate with the cops. He was forced. This was a man caught throwing around 20,000 dollar bribes. This was a man as fundamentally corrupt as his boss, Leon Benzer, the mastermind of this massive scam. No jail time? Come on, guys, this was one of the two crooks who crashed the Las Vegas housing market. Prosecutors say he should only pay about 12 million dollars in restitution. But that’ll never happen. That will never, ever happen.
Jeff German, reporter for the Las Vegas Review-Journal, deserves a Pulitzer for the work he’s done on the HOA scandal. It would be a major crime if he didn’t win ALL the journalism awards.
(link to German’s story on Ralph Priola)
