Investigation of BLM Land Sale, Henderson, NV

We investigated allegations of potential improprieties surrounding the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) 2012 sale of 480 acres of land outside Henderson, NV, to land developer Christopher Milam to build a sports stadium complex. 

 

The City of Henderson filed suit against Milam in January 2013, claiming misrepresentation and fraud, after Milam attempted to terminate an agreement he had with the City to build the stadium. The City feared that Milam had bought the land with the intent of “flipping” it instead of building the stadium. The City also alleged that former BLM Director Robert Abbey might have been inappropriately involved in the land sale process before he retired from BLM in 2012. 

 

We discovered no evidence that Milam purchased the land with the intent to flip it, but our investigation revealed that Abbey was personally and substantially involved in the presale process for the land. We also found that Abbey stood to benefit personally from the sale through his business connection to Mike Ford, a land consultant who represented Milam’s business interests during the sale process. We presented these findings to the District of Nevada U.S. Attorney’s Office, which declined prosecution.

 

In addition, our investigation revealed that Ford, also a former BLM employee, had an unusually high level of access to BLM personnel and processes before and during the land sale. A BLM realty specialist who was involved in the presale process told us that she gave precedence to Ford’s land applications when he did business with BLM, and that she had shared nonpublic draft documents with him during the Henderson presale. Her actions appeared to violate Federal regulations that prohibit preferential treatment and the improper use of nonpublic information.