The Ashby Farmers Cooperative Elevator Co., Grant County, MN, which closed after reports of a long-time scheme to divert co-op funds for use by the general manager for safaris, taxidermy, and other related expenses, will reopen Wednesday, October 3, 2018, under a lease agreement to the Wheaton-Dumont Co-op Elevator, Wheaton, MN.
“The closing of the elevator was a real kick in the teeth to the Ashby community,“ says Russell Dewey president of the Ashby Farmers Cooperative Elevator Company board. “We are proud to be able to reopen the company so quickly and under the new management of a great team."
The Wheaton-Dumont Coop Elevator operates 16 facilities across a nine-county area, says Philip Deal, general manager of the company.
“We think Ashby will be a great addition to our family of elevators,” says Deal. “We understand the importance of the elevator to the community and the local producers and look forward to working with them for a long time to come."
The Ashby elevator was closed two weeks ago after it was discovered that Jerry Hennessey, the long-time general manager of the co-op, had apparently misappropriated funds by writing checks on the co-op account for hunting safaris, taxidermy, and personal credit card bills.
When the alleged theft was first announced to the membership, a little over $2 million in unauthorized checks had been discovered, says Erik Ahlgren, the attorney who has been representing the co-op since the authorized checks were discovered.
“That number has since ballooned to a little over $4.9 million in unauthorized checks," he says. "Of that amount, $3 million of those were written in the last six years, and about $2 million of the checks were written prior to that six-year time frame and date back as far as 2003. We believe that we may be able to recover the proceeds from the unauthorized checks that were written in the last six years and may be able to go back all the way to 2003."
The newly discovered checks include more safari trips and more unauthorized payment of personal credit cards, as well as checks that appear to be written for construction projects on Hennessey's home and land purchases.
Hennessy has not been found since the unauthorized checks were discovered.
