Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Grand Jury Demands UCAN Financial Records

Utility Consumers' Action Network (UCAN), a prominent watchdog operation, has received a subpoena to testify before a federal grand jury. In a document that I have seen, the U.S. Attorney's office wants all records relating to UCAN and a related organization, Privacy Rights Clearinghouse (PRCH); former San Diego political candidate Peter Navarro and his wife Leslie W. Lebon; Death by China Productions LLC, a group set up for making a movie of a book by the same name Navarro co-authored; Dan DiMicco, chief executive of steelmaker Nucor; Patrick McFadden, head of Nucor's public affairs, and Red Rock Partners, which presumably is Red Rock Energy Partners, a fund set up to make energy investments. Some UCAN insiders suspect that the non-profit group lost money investing funds in Red Rock.

My column of August 24, 2011, showed how North Carolina-based Nucor put $1 million into production of the China-bashing movie, but the money went first to UCAN. McFadden explained to me at the time that Navarro wanted the $1 million sent to UCAN, so the company didn't argue.

The grand jury wants financial records, contracts, consulting agreements, invoices, receipts, phone logs, written and electronic correspondence, investment promotional materials, investment statements, and documentary production reports from UCAN. In addition, the U.S. Attorney's office wants records of "all payments to Michael Shames [UCAN's chief executive], including salary and bonuses and travel/expense reimbursements." A previous Reader article showed that Shames was claiming to be a lawyer and filing for intervenor payments from the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) as an attorney, although he was not a member of the State Bar. He has since rejoined the bar.

The grand jury also requests "All financial reviews or audits performed on UCAN or PRCH books; and identification of all financial institution accounts used by or held for the benefit of UCAN or PRCH."

As stated previously in the Reader, a group of whistleblowers within UCAN has protested conditions there and has been especially concerned about what they suspected to have been financial irregularities.

Pictured: Michael Shames

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all

Previous article

Conservatives cry, “Turnabout is fair gay!”

Will Three See Eight’s Fate?

Utility Consumers' Action Network (UCAN), a prominent watchdog operation, has received a subpoena to testify before a federal grand jury. In a document that I have seen, the U.S. Attorney's office wants all records relating to UCAN and a related organization, Privacy Rights Clearinghouse (PRCH); former San Diego political candidate Peter Navarro and his wife Leslie W. Lebon; Death by China Productions LLC, a group set up for making a movie of a book by the same name Navarro co-authored; Dan DiMicco, chief executive of steelmaker Nucor; Patrick McFadden, head of Nucor's public affairs, and Red Rock Partners, which presumably is Red Rock Energy Partners, a fund set up to make energy investments. Some UCAN insiders suspect that the non-profit group lost money investing funds in Red Rock.

My column of August 24, 2011, showed how North Carolina-based Nucor put $1 million into production of the China-bashing movie, but the money went first to UCAN. McFadden explained to me at the time that Navarro wanted the $1 million sent to UCAN, so the company didn't argue.

The grand jury wants financial records, contracts, consulting agreements, invoices, receipts, phone logs, written and electronic correspondence, investment promotional materials, investment statements, and documentary production reports from UCAN. In addition, the U.S. Attorney's office wants records of "all payments to Michael Shames [UCAN's chief executive], including salary and bonuses and travel/expense reimbursements." A previous Reader article showed that Shames was claiming to be a lawyer and filing for intervenor payments from the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) as an attorney, although he was not a member of the State Bar. He has since rejoined the bar.

The grand jury also requests "All financial reviews or audits performed on UCAN or PRCH books; and identification of all financial institution accounts used by or held for the benefit of UCAN or PRCH."

As stated previously in the Reader, a group of whistleblowers within UCAN has protested conditions there and has been especially concerned about what they suspected to have been financial irregularities.

Pictured: Michael Shames

Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Were UCAN Books Audited? Cooked?

Next Article

Fellmeth Joins UCAN Board

Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader