Roswell Daily Record THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
Grand jury indicts ex-controller
Vol. 121, No. 228 75¢ Daily / $1.25 Sunday
INSIDE NEWS
NEW NATIONAL MONUMENT
September 22, 2012
SATURDAY
www.rdrnews.com
SANTA FE (AP) — The for mer controller of the New Mexico Finance Authority has been indicted on securities fraud and forgery charges tied to the falsification of the agency’s financial audit, but a grand jury declined to bring charges against another authority executive who was arrested in August. The Regulation and Licensing Department on Friday announced the indictment of Greg Campbell, who left the agency in
June. As controller, he headed the authority’s accounting operations. The department said a grand jury in Santa Fe on Thursday declined to indict the authority’s chief operating officer, John Duff. He has been on leave without pay since his arrest in August as an alleged accessory to securities fraud and for allegedly conspiring to engage in a pattern of racketeering. Securities regulators said at the time of the arrests
A forensic audit of the authority is under way to determine if any money is missing, how the audit was falsified and why it wasn’t caught until July after the state auditor’s office raised questions why the authority’s 2011 audit was months late in being submitted.
that Campbell and Duf f had violated state securities law by misrepresenting NMFA’s financial statements to ratings agencies and investors that buy the agency’s bonds.
Because of the grand jury’s decision, however, the State Securities Division has dropped its case against Duff and will not pursue criminal charges against him, said depart-
DURANGO, Colo. (AP) — A dramatic rock formation in southwestern Colorado that was home to ancestors of the Pueblo Indians 1,000 years ago now has protection as a national monument — a potential boost for tourism in a state key to the presidential election. - PAGE A7
TOP 5 WEB
For The Past 24 Hours
• First United Methodist to celebrate 125 years • County amends, adopts ICIP • RPD nabs fugitive Miguel Gabaldon • RPD arrests Jesse Ramirez • Rio Grande Rivalry, Anaya style
INSIDE SPORTS
Noah Vernau Photo
Quilting’s fun, relaxing; ask anyone
Quilters Mae Shaw and Charles White look at their French Braid quilt, one of seven they entered in the Pecos Valley Quilt Show, Friday, at the Civic Center.
NOAH VERNAU RECORD STAFF WRITER
The Pecos Valley Quilt Show has stitched togeth-
MEATBALL, PANTHERS ROLL HONDO
When it comes to nicknames for running backs, “The Bus” (Jerome Bettis) and “The Juice” (O.J. Simpson) quickly come to mind. For Lake Arthur football fans, however, the name on the tip of their tongues and, possibly forks, is “Meatball.” Panther fans lovingly call running back Miguel Rubio “Meatball” and, on Friday night, the junior delivered a show. ... - PAGE B1
TODAY’S OBITUARY • Emma Lee Blair - PAGE A7
HIGH ...93˚ LOW ....58˚
TODAY’S FORECAST
er quite a collection of quilts this weekend at the Civic Center, where artists and admirers alike have assembled to enjoy the
elite design and craftsmanship of more than 200 quilts.
The biannual Quilt Show, which continues
Libyans storm extremist compound in backlash of attack on US consulate
BENGHAZI, Libya (AP) — Hundreds of protesters stormed the compound of one of Libya’s strongest armed Islamic extremist groups Friday, evicting militiamen and setting fire to their building as the attack that killed the U.S. ambassador and three other Americans sparked a public backlash against ar med groups that run rampant in the country and defy the country’s new, post-Moammar Gadhafi leadership. Ar med men at the administrative center for the Ansar al-Shariah militia, suspected to have led the Sept. 11 attack on the U.S. Benghazi consulate, first fired in the air to disperse the crowd, but eventually withdrew from the
site with their weapons and vehicles after it was surrounded by waves of protesters shouting “No to militias.” No deaths were reported in the incident, which came after tens of thousands marched in Benghazi in a rally against armed militias. A vehicle was also burned at the compound, which was taken over by Libyan security forces after its occupants fled. For many Libyans, last week’s attack on the U.S. Consulate was the last straw with one of the biggest problems Libya has faced since Gadhafi’s ouster and death around a year ago — the multiple mini-armies that with their arsenals of machine guns and rocket-propelled
today from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., began Friday morning with vendors and product demonstrations, See QUILTING, Page A3
ment spokesman S. U. Mahesh. The Finance Authority provides low-cost financing for capital projects by cities, counties, schools and other New Mexico governmental organizations. The fake audit scandal has prompted a management shake-up of the authority and calls by legislators for stronger oversight. The authority operates independently from any state
Romney releases returns
See NMFA, Page A3
WASHINGTON (AP) — Mitt Romney, one of the wealthiest candidates ever to seek the presidency, paid nearly $2 million in federal taxes on the $13.7 million in income reported for himself and his wife last year, his U.S. retur ns showed Friday. That comes to an effective tax rate of 14.1 percent, lower than millions of middle-income Americans but actually more than he had to pay. Most of Romney’s income was from investment returns. That is why his rate was lower than taxpayers whose income was mostly from wages, which can be taxed at higher rates. Romney’s taxes have emerged as a key issue during the 2012 presidential race with President Barack Obama. Romney released his 2010 returns in January, but he continues to decline to disclose retur ns from previous years — including those while he worked at Bain Capital, the private equity See ROMNEY, Page A3
Accident with injuries
grenades are stronger than the regular armed forces and police.
The militias, a legacy of the rag-tag popular forces that fought Gadhafi’s regime, tout themselves as protectors of Libya’s revolution, providing security where police cannot. But many say they act like gangs, detaining and intimidating rivals and carrying out killings. Militias made up of Islamic radicals are notorious for attacks on Muslims who don’t abide by their hardline ideology. Officials and witnesses say fighters from Ansar alShariah led the attack on the U.S. consulate. Some 30,000 people filled
Jessica Palmer Photo
Police and Emergency Services were called to the intersection of Second Street and Washington Avenue around 2:30 p.m. Friday, following a collision between a motorcycle and an auto. The operator of the motorcycle was transported to the hospital for treatment of his injuries. The police received conflicting reports from eyewitness and the accident is still under investigation. No citations have been issued.
Vonnie Goss, RCLT staple; looks like she’s gonna stay a while See LIBYA, Page A3
NOAH VERNAU RECORD STAFF WRITER
CLASSIFIEDS..........B6 COMICS.................B3 FINANCIAL .............A6 GENERAL ..............A2 HOROSCOPES ........A8 LOTTERIES ............A2 OPINION ................A4 SPORTS ................B1 WEATHER ..............A8 THE WEST ............A7
INDEX
Vonnie Goss
Noah Vernau Photo
Vonnie Goss was 2 years old, dressed as an angel and set atop a ladder prior to a Christmas play. Her mother warned her to sit tight or she’d fall, and Goss, seconds from her very first performance, took a breath, welcomed the moment and sang with all her heart. For Goss, the early taste of center stage proved more than memorable. To her mother, it was a sign of many performances to come. “I did this number, I did that number; I looked at the baby Jesus,” Goss laughed. “I just ate it up. And my mother said, ‘She’s going to be on stage just like I
was.’” Goss, whose mother performed on stage regularly in the early 1900s, has been a member of theater groups all over the country. Goss has directed or performed in dozens of plays and musicals, making new friends everywhere she goes. In her 57 years of marriage, she and her husband Jim had never lived anywhere for more than seven years. Then in 1986 they moved to Roswell, their 14th home, where Goss has been
involved with Roswell Community Little Theatre for about 25 years. Goss said that from her very first performance so many Christmases ago, she has been more than happy to embrace the spotlight. “Sure, I’ve had my moments of stage fright. Everybody does,” Goss said. “I wouldn’t give you a dime for a performer who doesn’t get stage fright, because that’s when your adrenaline’s pumping. That’s when you’re sharpening up.” Goss said she feels like a love of per for mance is something you have to be born with. “You either like it or you don’t, and you’re either good at it or you’re not. “And while I have studied the See SPOTLIGHT, Page A2