A massive financial scandal is unfolding in Vermont's Northeast Kingdom
Two developers who brought foreign investment to an impoverished part of Vermont are now accused of misusing hundreds of millions of dollars. The money came from more than 700 foreign investors hoping to get a special visa through the federal EB-5 program.
Now everything's come to a crashing halt. Locals are angry and Vermont state officials who backed the project are feeling betrayed.
To appreciate how a dramatic a turn things have taken, go back in time to 2008. The Great Recession had descended across northern Vermont. Back then, two American businessmen behind the project, Bill Stenger and Ariel Quiros made big promises to bring a huge infusion of investment, paid for by foreign investors.
“The vision was originally for about $800 million worth of projects that would have completely changed a very small town up on the Canadian border,” says Anne Galloway, a reporter for Vermont Digger, an online news site about state politics in Vermont. “It was designed to re-develop two ski resorts in the Northeast Kingdom, which is this region of northern Vermont. They also wanted to build a biotech center and the idea was to create thousands of jobs, as many as 11,000 altogether, and they were going to infuse cash in the region through investments from foreigners who want green cards.”
http://www.pri.org/stories/2016-04-21/massive-financial-scandal-unfolding-vermonts-northeast-kingdom
