Bankrupt Yellowstone Club founder faces criminal probe

Two years after the bankruptcy of Montana's Yellowstone Club laid bare a massive real estate scheme fueled by greed, fraud and hundreds of millions of dollars in ill-advised loans, criminal investigators are probing the activities of one of the founders of the ultra-exclusive resort. Authorities would not comment on the case. But sworn depositions and interviews with key parties indicate former club owner Edra Blixseth centers in the federal investigation. Blixseth's former bookkeeper has been questioned by the FBI, and her former office manager has hired a prominent Montana criminal defense attorney. Criminal charges in the case would be another stain on the swank Yellowstone Club, a millionaires-only private ski and golf resort near Yellowstone National Park. The club counts Bill Gates and Dan Quayle among its 300 members, yet spiraled into bankruptcy when the collapse of the real estate market exposed its massive debts. It has since emerged from bankruptcy under new ownership...more