Roswell Daily Record
INSIDE NEWS
SFC OKS TRADE BILL
WASHINGTON (AP) — A Russia trade bill that could double U.S. exports to the former Communist superpower but complicate already frosty relations with Russia advanced in the Senate Wednesday. The Senate Finance Committee combined the trade measure with a bill to punish Russian human rights violators. But lawmakers rejected a provision ... - PAGE B4
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• Child killed in ATV crash • Old West returns to Fort Stanton • Ash, silt from Little Bear fills Bonito Lake • Flower children, 2012 • After the storm
INSIDE SPORTS
SANTA FE (AP) — New Mexico’s top security regulator said Wednesday that potential fraud within a state financing authority extended beyond a faked financial audit that has national credit rating agencies considering whether to downgrade the agency’s bond ratings. The disclosure by Securities Division Director Daniel Tanaka came Wednesday as the New Mexico Finance Authority’s governing board scrapped a
Illegal traffic drops
WASHINGTON (AP) — The gover nment says apprehensions of people for federal immigration violations have dropped to the lowest level in 40 years, reflecting a decline in the northbound traffic of illegal immigrants from Mexico. At the same time, the number of suspects booked by the U.S. Marshals Service for criminal immigration offenses has gone up dramatically, a function of tougher law enforcement on the U.S. side of the border. In a report released Wednesday, the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics said the number of immigration-related apprehensions has steadily declined, peaking at 1.8 million in 2000 but dropping to 516,992 in 2010 — the lowest level since 1972. See ILLEGAL, Page A3
RG3 SIGNS WITH REDSKINS
ASHBURN, Va. (AP) — Robert Griffin III and the Washington Redskins ended their contract impasse Wednesday when the rookie quarterback signed a fouryear, fully guaranteed deal worth $21.1 million. It also includes a club option for a fifth year. Griffin’s agent, Ben Dogra, told The Associated Press ... - PAGE B1
TODAY’S • • • • • • • •
OBITUARIES
Sandra Jo Vale Ruth Annette Hankins Rachel Wynona King Frances Carpenter Gilbert Silva Elizabeth Burnett Joel Leyva Patricia I. Dunn - PAGE A6
THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
Fraud broader than faked audit
Vol. 121, No. 172 75¢ Daily / $1.25 Sunday
THURSDAY
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“It was a rogue employee who misled the board, who misled the staff and who misled various consultants.”
plan for an outside law firm to investigate how the audit was faked. The board instead wants a similar legal and accounting probe to be handled through the state auditor’s of fice to ensure the independence of the review. The authority provides
low-cost financing to New Mexico gover nments for capital projects.
At issue in the unfolding scandal are financial statements, which were faked to indicate they had been audited by an outside accounting firm. The financial information is relied
upon by creditors and investors in the authority’s bonds. Authority officials have blamed a former controller, who left in June, for the fake audit. However, board member Paul Gutierrez said the problem was caused by management and the board failing to carry out their responsibilities. He pointed out there was never an “exit conference” between authority officials and the agency’s outside auditor.
That’s supposed to happen before an audit is approved. However, the fraudulent documents included a faked letter from the auditor and a statement that an exit conference had been held last December — on a date that was a Saturday. The audit and its financial statements were made available to the investment community as part of a bond issuance by the authority in March. See AUDIT, Page A3
Mark Wilson Photo
The Patriot Guard welcome the Nation of Patriots Flag Tour as they arrive at Champion Motorsports in Roswell after a three-hour ride from Lubbock, Wednesday morning.
Bikers raise money for veterans’ families CHAUNTE’L POWELL RECORD STAFF WRITER
One flag will be transported more than 14,000
miles across the country in 100 days to raise money for families of U.S. soldiers injured during combat. This is the Nation of Patriots’ third consecu-
tive year doing the summer fundraiser and Wednesday the flag made its way to Roswell. Ruidoso Downs resident Terry Proctor was the first
New Mexico recipient of the flag this summer and stood outside Champion Motorsports to take the See BIKERS, Page A3
RSVP holds community lunch Leases up for renewal NOAH VERNAU RECORD STAFF WRITER
In an ef fort to build cohesiveness among nonprofit organizations and volunteers in Chaves County, the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program held a community luncheon Wednesday at the Elks Lodge, inviting residents to socialize, network and lear n about RSVP’s role as a central dispersing agent for area volunteers. Organizations with representatives or volunteers in attendance included Girl Scouts of the Desert Southwest, Eastern New
Mexico Medical Center, Wilson-Cobb Genealogy Library, Keep Roswell Beautiful and Habitat for Humanity. According to RSVP data, about 1,000 Chaves County RSVP volunteers have contributed more than 1.3 million hours of their time since the local chapter was founded in 1975.
RSVP introduced Sean Davis as the new program director for the organization, whose mission is to encourage an active lifestyle for those 55 years and older by of fering meaningful volunteer opportunities.
‘I can hum in any key’
HIGH ...95˚ LOW ....69˚
TODAY’S FORECAST
CLASSIFIEDS..........B5 COMICS.................B3 ENTERTAINMENT.....A8 FINANCIAL .............B4 GENERAL ..............C4 HOROSCOPES ........B5 LOTTERIES ............A2 OPINION ................A4 SPORTS ................B1 WEATHER ..............A8
July 19, 2012
INDEX
Mark Wilson Photo
A hummingbird approaches a feeder for a lunchtime meal near Ruidoso recently.
Davis, who has a master’s degree in cociology and for several years taught at New Mexico State University, said that as program director, he will do what he can to help RSVP overcome budget problems. He said one of his aims will be to help bring back mileage reimbursements for RSVP volunteers, a longstanding benefit that was cut last year. “My main goal is to help this organization get more volunteers and grow and grow and grow,” Davis said. “And to do my best to withstand any
See RSVP, Page A3
Around 650 of more than 3,500 grazing leases issued by the New Mexico State Land Of fice are up for renewal this year. The leases are for five-year terms. The majority of leases are from the eastern region of the state, said Danny Sandoval, management analyst for the state land office. Current leasees have until Aug. 1 to submit their renewal applications. A vital component of the renewal process requires leasees to list all of the improvements they have made to the state trust land. Competitive bids are available for those interested in bidding on an existing state agricultural lease. Bid applicants must submit all necessary paperwork be-
tween Aug. 1 and Sept. 1. Money generated from the leases goes toward the various beneficiaries of the state land trust.
The state land of fice manages more than 9 million acres of surface area. In the 2011 fiscal year, the trust lands and permanent funds produced more than $499 million in income for the various beneficiaries to include public schools, universities and special schools and hospitals, which serve children with physical, visual and auditory disabilities.
For more infor mation, contact Sandoval at 505927-5775, or dannys@slo. state.nm.us, or visit nmstatelands.org.
6 die, 32 hurt in Bulgaria bus bombing SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) — A bomb exploded on a bus carrying Israeli youth in a Bulgarian resort Wednesday, killing at least six people and wounding 32, of ficials said. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called it “an Iranian terror attack” and promised a tough response. The explosion took place in the Black Sea city of Burgas, some 250 miles east of the capital, Sofia. TV images showed smoke billowing from the scene — a parking lot at the local airport where the Israeli tourists had AP Photo landed shortly before the blast. Several buses and Smoke rises into the sky after an explosion at Burgas airport, outside the Black Sea city of Burgas, Bulgaria, See BULGARIA, Page A2 Wednesday.