Obama returning cash from one accused Ponzi schemer, keeping money from bundler who helped another

Published: 12:49 PM 04/26/2012 By Matthew Boyle - The Daily Caller

President Barack Obama's re-election campaign plans to return campaign donations to alleged Ponzi-schemer Shervin Neman, but is keeping money from a bundler who helped convicted Ponzi-schemer R. Allen Stanford and other alleged financial criminals get tax breaks.

Neman is under investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission and is accused of running a $7.54 million Ponzi scheme. According to public records, he gave the maximum allowable $35,800 to Obama's re-election campaign and another $30,800 to the Democratic National Committee.

 An unnamed Obama campaign official told Politico Wednesday that the president plans to return the money to Neman. "With 1.8 million donors thus far, we constantly review those contributions for issues," the unnamed Obama campaign official said. "In this particular case, we will be refunding the contributions and have placed the funds in escrow until a trusteeship or other appropriate place to return these funds is established given the interests of the investors."

Despite his rhetoric railing against them, Obama has a history of taking campaign contributions from alleged and convicted financial criminals - and people connected to them. The Obama campaign also has a history of returning money in some cases. For instance, the Obama campaign took money from people connected to former New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine's MF Global collapse. Obama actually removed bundler Ron Klein for his connections to Corzine's financial activity.

But, the campaign continues to remain silent when it comes to its U.S. Virgin Islands bundler Marjorie Rawls Roberts - who helps her wealthy clients navigate offshore tax loopholes in the territory. Roberts, who has pledged to raise between $100,000 and $200,000 for Obama's 2012 campaign, has helped people like Stanford, who was convicted of running a $7 billion Ponzi scheme, and alleged financial criminals from the National Rural Utilities Cooperative Finance Corporation, with their applications for tax breaks.

DNC spokesman Brad Woodhouse and Obama campaign spokesman Ben LaBolt haven't returned The Daily Caller's numerous requests for comment on Roberts. Even so, her political toxicity may have reached critical mass in recent weeks as DNC chairwoman Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz canceled a scheduled fundraiser in the U.S. Virgin Islands at the last minute after TheDC revealed the bundler's ties to convicted and alleged financial criminals.