Jeff Ward

jward@muncie.gannett.com

Consider it case closed on the missing millions of Ball State University funds. No one will be charged, according to prosecutor Jeffrey Arnold.

Someone managed to "lose" $13.1 million in university funds and no one is held accountable. Incredible. Was this the perfect crime or a gross case of incompetence? Maybe a combination of both.

Don't blame Arnold and the prosecutor's office, the last link in a long line of investigations at the federal and state level that also resulted in no charges.

If you recall, the university's former director of cash and investment, Gale Prizevoits, entered into contracts with "investors" in 2008 and 2010 that resulted in the loss of university funds. Some of the money funneled toward the "investors" was used to buy mansions, townhouse buildings, luxury cars and sports memorabilia. All of this happened without the knowledge of Ball State officials. The university has since closed loopholes to make these kinds of actions harder — hopefully much harder — to conceal. Prizevoits entered into the contracts on her own and managed to cover her tracks from university officials.

Of that $13.1 million, only $1.5 million has been recovered. The rest has been written off, lost. No one held accountable.

Don't think of this a victimless white collar crime. Ball State as an institution is certainly a victim. So, too, the students, parents and scholarship providers who paid money to Ball State, without worry the money would be squandered. Sure, they might not have been directly affected by the loss, but their money was taken just the same.

To give an idea of how big this loss is, let's say after $1.5 million was recovered, the realized loss was $11.5 million. That's equivalent to about 620 full time BSU undergraduate students attending for an academic year.

Two of those "investors," Seth Beoku Betts of Florida, pleaded guilty in federal court to securities fraud and George Montolio of New Jersey pleaded guilty to wire fraud. Other players in this saga have pleaded guilty to charges and one lawyer was disbarred.

If someone can make off with more than $13 million and not face charges, that's a clear indication there are major gaps in the legal system. Those gaps ought to be closed. State lawmakers, some of them showing keen interest in a prosecution, should investigate and craft legislation that makes it easier to follow the money and hold people accountable, with severe penalties for breaking the law. If these kind of shenanigans could happen at Ball State, it could happen at other universities or other institutions that use public funds.

It appears all Prizevoits is guilty of is making incredibly foolish investment choices. A flawed person taking advantage of a flawed process.

Some accounts suggest she wanted high-yield returns because she thought the university's investment strategy was too conservative.

Ball State said it would be fruitless to pursue Prizevoits, who apparently does not have assets to justify continuing to spend university time and money in attempts to recover lost funds.

That might be true, but it also sets a bad precedent. Maybe a civil case against Prizevoits, where the burden of proof is lower, might result in a verdict that acknowledges wrong-doing. It might also send a message to other potential wrong-doers that actions have consequences.

Collecting damages could be another matter.

To do nothing. To walk away from a loss of more than $11 million, is unconscionable.

It appears someone, maybe several someones, got away with the perfect crime, and the public is left to wonder how it happened.

Jeff Ward is a news columnist for The Star Press. Email him at jward@muncie.gannett.com with tips, suggestions or story ideas.

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