Even More Trouble For Rep. Aaron Schock

Via Blue Nation Review:

Embattled Congressman Aaron Schock used a shell corporation last year to complete a real estate transaction arranged by and financed by Schock’s political supporters and campaign donors — raising troubling new questions about whether he received favorable terms on the purchase price and financing, and whether he repaid the donors with legislative favors and purchases from his campaign account. An investigation by Blue Nation Review has uncovered the purchase of a vacant lumberyard on 3.5 acres of commercial land by a shell corporation controlled by Schock. The seller, broker, and lenders were all top political donors to Aaron Schock who in at least one case was actively lobbying Schock on legislation favorable to his bank.

Jeff Green is the owner of a number of auto dealerships in Peoria. As Paul Singer at USA Today reported, he also owns a helicopter that Schock has utilized on several occasions, possibly in violation of House ethics rules. In 2008, Green paid $2.3 million for a nearly 13 acre parcel of land that was a former Menards hardware store and lumber warehouse on W. Pioneer Parkway in Peoria. He built a Ford dealership – Finish Line Ford – on the larger section of the property that had included the retail portion of Menards. He put the smaller section, which was 3.5 of the 13 acres, up for sale for $1,077,000. Ultimately, however, he sold the property to Aaron Schock for just $300,000, according to the Peoria County Assessor’s office. In the three months following the sale, Schock’s campaign paid out more than $100,000 to two auto dealerships owned by Green.

There's much more about this latest fishy deal at the link. (Tipped by JMG reader Larry)