A businessman tied to the public corruption scandal inside the Utah Attorney General's Office has not paid his court-ordered restitution and must pay off the $4.1 million in monthly installments of $100, state parole officials have ruled.
Marc Sessions Jenson must begin the payments immediately a Utah Board of Pardons and Parole document issued March 3 shows.
If Jenson, who is serving 36 months parole, fails to pay, he risks being sent to back prison.
Jenson, 56, contends his debts have long been paid and has been fighting the board on the issue since last summer.
With the board's ruling, however, Jenson's only remaining avenue to challenge the restitution order would be through the state courts, board spokesman, Greg Johnson said.
Jenson's attorneys could not immediately be reached for comment on Monday.
The restitution was ordered by a 3rd District judge as part of a no-contest plea agreement in a securities sales fraud case brought against Jenson by the Attorney General's Office in 2005.
Jenson was jailed for nonpayment in 2011, but released last October after his attorneys petitioned the board, claiming they had proof that the debts had been resolved through lawsuits, out-of-court settlements or other financial agreements.
His attorneys submitted hundreds of pages in court documents and financial records to the board and argued the issue before a hearing officer in January.
The Utah Attorney General's Office challenged Jenson's claims, telling the board that Jenson's alleged settlements or agreements are irrelevant because they were not provided to, or approved by the court when the case was settled in 2008, nor were they documented with the AG's office.
Court papers show Jenson was to pay a total of $4.1 million to two former business partners: Michael Bodell, who is owed $1.6 million, and Morris Ebeling, who is owed $2.5 million.
Bodell appeared before the board in January, claiming he has never been paid.
Ebeling was not at the hearing because he is serving a 366 day sentence in an Arizona federal prison after pleading guilty to a theft charge in Salt Lake City's U.S. District Court. Ebeling embezzled $70,000 in checks made out to his deceased mother from the Social Security Administration between 2008 and 2011, court records show. His son, Mit Ebeling, spoke to the parole board on his behalf, saying that his father had also not been paid.
Jenson became a key figure in the public corruption case of former Utah Attorneys General Mark Shurtleff and John Swallow in 2013, when he claimed the two shook him down for money and favors before and after the 2008 plea deal.
He claims his actions, including the plea and payments he made to third parties, were directed by Shurtleff and his successor, Swallow. He has also said his 2011 incarceration was political payback for resisting pressure from the two men.
The Attorney General's Office also filed a second case against Jenson in 2011, alleging fraud and money laundering in connection with a Beaver-area resort development project. He was acquitted of those charges in 2015.
In 2014, Shurtleff and Swallow were charged with multiple corruption and bribery-related felony and misdemeanors. Both have pleaded not guilty to the charges and their cases are ongoing.
jdobner@sltrib.com
Steve Griffin | The Salt Lake Tribune Marc Sessions Jenson, 54, becomes emotional as he testifies during his trial for second-degree felony charges of fraud, money laundering and theft by deception in connection with the failed Mt. Holly ski resort near Beaver, Utah. Trial is being held in the courtroom of Judge Elizabeth Hruby-Mills in the Matheson Courthouse in Salt Lake City, Friday, January 23, 2015.
Leah Hogsten | The Salt Lake Tribune Marc Sessions Jenson smiles as he enters the courtroom to hear the verdict. Jenson was found not guilty Friday, January 30, 2015 of fraud and money laundering in connection with the failed Mount Holly golf and ski resort near Beaver Ñ a case with ties to the bribery and corruption investigation of former Utah attorneys general Mark Shurtleff and John Swallow. Following a three-week trial, a jury of five men and three women deliberated 14 hours over two days before acquitting Jenson of four counts each of second-degree felony communications fraud and money laundering.
Leah Hogsten | The Salt Lake Tribune l-r Defense attorneys Brad Mumford, Helen Redd, defendant Marc Sessions Jenson and lead attorney Marcus Mumford embrace after he was found not guilty Friday, January 30, 2015 of fraud and money laundering in connection with the failed Mount Holly golf and ski resort near Beaver Ñ a case with ties to the bribery and corruption investigation of former Utah attorneys general Mark Shurtleff and John Swallow. Following a three-week trial, a jury of five men and three women deliberated 14 hours over two days before acquitting Jenson of four counts each of second-degree felony communications fraud and money laundering.
Donate to the newsroom now. The Salt Lake Tribune, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) public charity and contributions are tax deductible