Baylor Alum Accused of Money Fraud
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‘SING’ yOUR HEART OUT: WITH THE DEBUT OF SING ONLY A FEW DAYS AWAY, STUDENTS PUT THE FINAL TOUCHES ON THEIR ACTS PAGE 4 ROUNDING UP CAMPUS NEWS SINCE 1900 THE BAYLOR LARIAT WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2009 Baylor alum Olympian Dawes visits campus accused of money fraud By Stephen Bernard where Stanford was knighted in The Associated Press 2006 and helped sponsor high- stakes cricket matches. As news NE W YOR K — The federa l gov- of the charges broke Tuesday ernment says R. Allen Stanford’s afternoon, panicked residents of investment businesses were too Antigua swarmed a second bank good to be true, and shut his controlled by Stanford hoping companies down on Tuesday. to take their money out, only to Stanford graduated with a be turned away by guards. That Bachelor’s degree of Arts and Sci- bank was not part of the com- ences from Baylor in 1974. plaint released Tuesday. Two months after Bernard Dozens of angry customers Madoff was accused of running turned up at the main branch of the largest investment fraud in the Bank of Antigua trying to get history, Securities and Exchange their money. Commission officials raided the “Open the door and give offices of Stanford, a Texas bil- us our money,” Liston Lewis, a lionaire, and froze the assets of 45-year-old construction worker three companies he controls, said to one of the guards. “Even saying he perpetrated an $8 bil- if it takes until 12 o’clock give us lion investment fraud. our money.” Stanford was accused in civil Stanford’s whereabouts were Clint Cox/Lariat Staff charges of lying about the safety not immediately known. Brian of investments he sold as “cer- Bertsch, a spokesman for Stan- Former Olympic gymnast Dominique Dawes spoke Tuesday night in the Cashion Academic Building as part of a banquet honoring Black History Month. tificates of deposit” and prom- ford, referred all questions to Dawes’ motivational speech focused on the acronym “ENVISION” with each letter representing a talking point in her speech. ised unrealistically high rates of the SEC. Stephen Webster, an return. SEC attorney, said the agency is By Megan Duron The event took place on the tural Activities. Since retiring from gym- Regulators also said he faked actively trying to find Stanford Reporter fifth floor of the Cashion Aca- Dawes made history when nastics after 18 years, Dawes historical data about other and didn’t know whether he had demic Building on the Baylor she became the first African- said she has devoted her life to investments which he then used been served with court papers. Former Olympic gymnast University campus. American female gymnast to inspiring others, and has cho- to lure in more investors for the Stanford owns a home in St. Dominique Dawes explained Held in honor of Black His- earn an individual medal. She sen to do this through motiva- CD products. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands and the meaning of the acronym tory Month, the banquet was competed in three separate tional speaking. The fraud’s operations alleg- operates his businesses from “ENVISION” Tuesday night at sponsored by the Baylor Uni- Olympic Games in 1992, 1996 She stood at a meager 5 edly reached as far as the tiny the 22nd Annual Black Heri- versity Association of Black and 2000 and has won three feet 2 inches as she addressed Caribbean island of Antigua, Please see FRAUD, page 6 tage Banquet, in a speech titled Students in conjunction with medals: one gold and two “Success is a Journey.” the Department of Multicul- bronze. Please see DAWES, page 6 No students have reported stalking concerns, police say By Brittany Hardy The alleged stalker was of the Baylor Neighborhood and a stalker and brought in Staff writer reported to be near campus, Association, was quoted in the pictures of a white Ford vehicle on South 9th, 10th and 11th Channel 25 story and said the and a license plate number. The Despite a report by Channel streets. claims were based on a report man asked Williams to spread 25 news about an alleged stalk- Doak said a report was made given to him by a man from the the word concerning the pos- Associated Press er near Baylor campus on Satur- by a non-student last week, but neighborhood postal service. sibility of a stalker in the area. day, Baylor Chief of Police Jim no Baylor students have report- Williams said the postal The postal service man was Investigators from the U.S. Marshals office walk out of the offices of Stanford Doak said the campus police ed any claims of abduction or service man contacted him on unavailable for comment as of Financial Group and head to their other office building in the Galleria Tuesday, department has received no assault of any kind. Thursday, saying he witnessed in Houston. reports from students. Kelvin Williams, president an incident involving a woman Please see ALERT, page 6 New law hinders Obama approves pool opening at stimulus plan By Liz Sidoti and Tom Raum Wall Street dove ever lower. The Associated Press The Dow Jones industrials student center fell 297.81 points, closing less DENVER — Racing to than a point above their lowest reverse the country’s econom- level in five and a half years. By Trent Goldston after becoming trapped in the ic spiral, President Barack Obama focused on the Reporter drain of a pool spa. Under the Obama signed the mammoth $787 billion stimulus plan, influence of Baker, lawmakers stimulus package into law an ambitious package of fed- The re-opening of the Baylor were prompted into action and Tuesday and readied a new eral spending and tax cuts aquatic facilities at the Student the law known as the Virginia $50 billion foreclosure rescue designed to revive the econo- Life Center was scheduled for Graeme Baker Pool and Safety for legions of Americans who my and save millions of jobs. Tuesday, but today the pools Act was brought into existence. Jacky Reyes/Lariat Staff are in danger of losing their Most wage-earners will soon still remain empty. “The new law says that all homes. see the first paycheck evi- The pool at the McLane Student Life Center sits empty Monday afternoon The entire aquatics facil- public pools in the nation must as staff wait for a new drain cover in compliance with the Virginia Graeme There was no recovery yet dence of tax breaks that will ity was closed and drained for have the new safety drains Baker Pool and Safety Act. The Act requires all public pools to install safer for beleaguered automakers, total $400 for individuals and maintenance on Dec. 19, and installed before they can open,” drain covers to prevent accidental death. who were back in Washing- $800 for couples. the timing of its completion is said Van Davis, assistant direc- ton for more bailout billions. The stimulus package was still unclear. It’s prolonged clo- tor for Fitness & Nutrition Edu- pools and spas in the U.S. are Student Life Center was one of General Motors Corp. said it a huge victory for Obama less sure has caused students to take cation. required to close, including all them. was closing plants, Chrysler than one month into his presi- notice. It wasn’t until Dec. 2007 that public pools, community parks, “There are only about four LLC said it was cutting vehi- dency. But he struck a sober “It threw off my routine. I the act came to life when Presi- YMCAs, apartments, condo- manufacturers for these ANSI cle models and both said they tone and lowered expectations used to go swimming there dent Bush signed the paper- miniums and other homeowner drains covers, and they are were getting rid of thousands for an immediate turnaround every day, but this semester I work. At the time of its signing, associations, water parks, hotels, overloaded with orders,” said more jobs as they made their in the severe recession that is haven’t been able to go at all,” the Consumer Product Safety schools and universities,” said Ben Robert, coordinator for restructuring cases for $5 bil- well into its second year. San Antonio junior Andy Bill- Commission mandated that all Laurie Batter of the National Aquatics and Safety Education lion more for Chrysler and as “None of this will be easy,” nitzer said. public pools comply with the Swimming Pool Foundation. at Baylor. “We were supposed much as $16.6 billion more for he said. “The road to recovery The story behind the pool law by using only ASME/ANSI Due to the enormous num- to have it all in by January, but GM. The United Auto Work- will not be straight. We will closure goes back much further drains by Dec. 19, giving all of ber of public pools across the now they are telling us that we ers union said it had agreed make progress, and there may than Dec. 19. In 2002, Virginia the facilities about a year to get nation rushing to order their will have it by the first week of to tentative concessions that be some slippage along the Graeme Baker, the granddaugh- ready. Even then, many pool drain covers, many have been March.” could help Detroit’s struggling way.” ter of James Baker III, former facilities were not prepared. forced to close until they can Big Three. U.S. Secretary of State, died “Most of the 300,000 public obtain the covers. The McLane Please see POOL, page 6 Anything but reassured, Please see PLAN, page 6 VOL. 108 No.62 www.baylor.edu/Lariat © 2009, BAYLOR UNIVERSITY 2 The Baylor Lariat OPINION Wednesday, February 18, 2009 point of view Editorial Texas Computers can’t weather a replace in-class changing learning constant Americans rely on comput- online classes for adults.