Marc Jenson describes dealings with former AG Shurtleff in testimony

Marc Jenson describes dealings with former AG Shurtleff in testimony

(Steve Griffin/The Salt Lake Tribune/Pool)


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SALT LAKE CITY — Despite the emotion in his voice, Marc Sessions Jenson spoke clearly Friday as he testified in the fraud case against him, painting the picture of a man being pulled in all directions as his livelihood crumbled around him.

Doing some of that pulling, he alleges, was then-Attorney General Mark Shurtleff.

Jenson's testimony reached back to a previous conviction, when he ultimately took a plea in abeyance on charges of securities fraud. He eventually ended up behind bars, where he is currently serving a 10-year prison sentence, when he failed to pay restitution.

Jenson's account Friday dredged up previous allegations against Shurtleff and former Attorney General John Swallow. The pair now faces their own criminal charges centered around Jenson, who claims they shook him down for money and favors during a trip to the posh Southern California villa where he was living in 2009.

When court recessed for the weekend with Jenson still on the stand, the onetime millionaire had yet to address how plans to develop an exclusive ski and golf resort in Beaver County had fallen apart, costing investors millions and landing fraud charges on Jenson.

His brother, Stephen Jenson, was also charged and accepted a plea deal partway through the trial, pleading no contest Wednesday to three reduced charges of third-degree felony communications fraud, while one additional fraud charge and 10 counts of money laundering, all second-degree felonies, were dismissed. He will be sentenced March 30.

Marc Sessions Jenson, 54, testifies during his trial on second-degree felony charges of fraud, money laundering and theft by deception in connection with the failed Mount Holly ski resort near Beaver. Trial is being held in the courtroom of Judge Elizabeth Hruby-Mills in the Matheson Courthouse in Salt Lake City, Friday, January 23, 2015. (Photo: Steve Griffin/The Salt Lake Tribune/Pool)
Marc Sessions Jenson, 54, testifies during his trial on second-degree felony charges of fraud, money laundering and theft by deception in connection with the failed Mount Holly ski resort near Beaver. Trial is being held in the courtroom of Judge Elizabeth Hruby-Mills in the Matheson Courthouse in Salt Lake City, Friday, January 23, 2015. (Photo: Steve Griffin/The Salt Lake Tribune/Pool)

Marc Jenson has pleaded not guilty to multiple counts of second-degree communications fraud, theft by deception and money laundering in the wake of the failed development. Prosecutors say he failed to advise investors of his previous felony conviction, that he was facing additional charges, and that the project was nearly broke.

Marc Jenson's attorney, Marcus Mumford, argues that investors got what was contractually owed to them, even if it wasn't what they had expected, and that the blame for the project's failure lies with New York-based hedge fund XE Capital for failing to pay its share.

Disgruntled investors pointed their fingers at Marc Jenson rather than XE Capital after two closed-door meetings with Shurtleff, Mumford said in his opening statement.

The Utah Attorney General's Office, led by Shurtleff, initially filed charges against the Jensons but removed itself from the case in 2013. Mumford sent subpoenas to Shurtleff and Swallow to testify in the trial. Their lawyers filed objections, which the judge upheld.

Marc Jenson testified that he acquired the Elk Meadows property through his "hard money lending" operation, buying it out of bankruptcy when the previous owner defaulted on the loan. He dreamed of turning it into the same kind of high-end, membership-based ski and golf resort as the Yellowstone Club in Montana, which had become a lucrative, overnight success.

The Jenson brothers' resort, to be called the Mount Holly Club, was to include 1,200 building lots starting at $1 million each, a Jack Nicklaus-designed golf course and a ski area managed by Olympic gold medalist Ted Ligety.

With his criminal history and facing charges from a disgruntled former associate, Marc Jenson was to take on a subcontractor role in the development. With his name on the company, Marc Jenson feared the project would struggle, he testified.

In the wake of his legal troubles, the Mount Holly project was "all I had left," he said.

Wanting to fight the charges, Marc Jenson was put in touch with Tim Lawson, who showed up and introduced himself as "Shurtleff's enforcer."

"I thought it was ludicrous," Marc Jenson said. "I didn't believe him."


This is Mark Shurtleff. I understand you are meeting with Tim Lawson. The way this is going to get resolved is through Tim Lawson. Take care of him. He has a good family.

–Marc Jenson on his phone call with Shurtleff


Lawson showed him a string of text messages from Shurtleff and eventually put him on the phone with the attorney general, Marc Jenson said, crying as he recounted the meeting.

"This is Mark Shurtleff. I understand you are meeting with Tim Lawson," Marc Jenson claims he was told in that call. "The way this is going to get resolved is through Tim Lawson. Take care of him. He has a good family."

The next day, Marc Jenson said he called Shurtleff's office and spoke to an assistant in hopes of talking to Shurtleff. An hour later, Lawson showed up at his office and advised him to communicate with Shurtleff through him.

Lawson left Marc Jenson's office that day with a check for $5,000 or $10,000, he said.

From then on, Marc Jenson said he was pulled in two directions, with his high-paid attorneys urging him to plead guilty to reduced charges while Lawson promised the attorney general was "watching from 30,000 feet" and could secure a plea in abeyance.

The plea in abeyance included a requirement that Marc Jenson have no part in "hard money lending" and was prohibited from "participating in the ownership, financing and/or management of the Mount Holly Club resort development in Beaver County."

Two days after the plea deal was reached, Shurtleff and Marc Jenson met, he said.

Marc Jenson said Shurtleff asked him to "immerse him" in the world of wealthy and high-profile people — notable for their position in their religion or business standing — who had contacted the attorney general on Marc Jenson's behalf.

"I think he was enamored of it," Marc Jenson said.

With Marc Jenson's plans to return to California, he said Shurtleff wanted to know what would happen with Mount Holly.

"He knew what it would become," an exclusive and profitable development like the Yellowstone Club, Marc Jenson said.

Reached by telephone Friday night, Shurtleff said he wouldn't comment until Marc Jenson is done testifying.

Marc Jenson's testimony, which is expected to continue when the trial resumes Tuesday, ended with his description of the meeting with Shurtleff.

Before dismissing the jury for the weekend recess, 3rd District Court Judge Elizabeth Hruby-Mills gave a strong reminder Friday not to read news about the case and "not to form any conclusions."

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