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SALT LAKE CITY — A new filing in a Las Vegas court shines further light on the relationship between Utah Attorney General John Swallow and indicted businessman Jeremy Johnson and suggests Swallow may have sought a business relationship with Johnson while working in the Attorney General's Office.
As long ago as February 2010, Swallow, then chief deputy in the AG's office, was pitching joint ventures involving himself, iWorks and others, including a payday loan marketing plan and a Cash for Gold project.
Emails supporting these claims are included in documents filed Thursday in the Federal Civil Court of Nevada by Johnson and his fellow defendants, who are acting as their own attorneys in ongoing civil proceedings against iWorks.
Those emails flesh out a friendship between Johnson and Swallow, and are cited in making the case to the court that Utah's attorney general is a relevant witness who believed in Johnson's company and who has intimate knowledge of the very business practices at the center of the FTC lawsuit.
"…[Swallow] became exceptionally well-versed in the dealings and details of the iWorks' operations and the company's fervent efforts to not just be in compliance with the law, but be leaders in the online marketing industry," the filing states.
I have not heard much from Aaron on the payday project and I hear that the Cash for Gold opportunity is getting close. I have heard from the Check City people that they have been working with your team…. in case things are getting warped at all, have your guys call me.
If Johnson can make his case of a relevant relationship that compels a judge to allow Swallow to be deposed, it could have impact not only on the civil case, but also on the investigations into the attorney general's office and impact the criminal allegations against Johnson.
A February 2010 email from Swallow to Johnson praises his efforts in helping victims of the Haiti earthquake, then raises the subject of business dealings with iWorks and inquires about the status of what he refers to as the payday project.
The email attributed to Swallow states: "I have not heard much from Aaron on the payday project and I hear that the Cash for Gold opportunity is getting close. I have heard from the Check City people that they have been working with your team. ... In case things are getting warped at all, have your guys call me."
Rod Snow, attorney for Swallow, said Swallow was not seeking to profit from any deals with iWorks and maintains that in the case of both the payday project and the Cash for Gold opportunity he was simply connecting his former boss, Check City owner Richard Rawle, with iWorks' online marketing operation.
"It never materialized. He did not intend to make money or be part of it," Snow said of Swallow.
The relationship between Swallow and Johnson publically imploded in January 2013, when it was revealed that Swallow may have played a role in helping Johnson try to solve his problems with an FTC probe by connecting him with people who might be able to enlist the big bat of Nevada Sen. Harry Reid for a price.
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Swallow currently under investigation by FBI, Department of Justice
The U.S. Attorney's Office for Utah issued a statement Friday confirming Attorney General John Swallow is being investigated by the Department of Justice and the FBI.The FTC has since sued Johnson, his iWorks company and related entities in the Nevada Civil Court, and a criminal case against Johnson and four former iWorks employees is running concurrently in Utah.
As revealed in January, Johnson and an associate paid an initial $250,000 in October 2010 to Rawle, with the hope of enlisting Reid's help. Johnson maintains Swallow negotiated the amount, the total of which was to be $600,000.
Swallow has denied any role in negotiating the finances of the deal, and maintains he simply helped connect Johnson to people he believed could help lobby the FTC on his behalf.
Reid has also denied any knowledge of such a plan. Thursday's filing sets the stage for a Monday hearing in the Nevada Civil Court before Judge Miranda Du, who will hear arguments based on an emergency motion to stop discovery filed by the government April 15.
The government motion asks the court to halt depositions, except as it relates to ongoing seizure of defendants' assets, until after the criminal proceedings in Utah have played out. If Du decides to rule during the hearing and grant the government's motion to stay discovery, Swallow — and all other witnesses Johnson and his co-defendants hope to depose — will be off limits and the civil case will effectively be halted.
