COLUMBUS, Ohio, June 11 (UPI) -- There are new revelations about the scandal-plagued Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation, that it borrowed $250 million from money earmarked for the disabled.
The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports that the bureau tapped two funds managed by American Express Asset Management.
"We had bills to pay. We needed the money," spokesman Jeremy Jackson told the newspaper.
On Friday, as news came out about the bureau's borrowing, Ohio Attorney General Jim Petro announced a lawsuit against a politically connected Pittsburgh company, MDL Capital Management Inc., that also managed two funds. The bureau lost a total of $215 million there.
At a news conference announcing the lawsuit, Petro said he only learned recently of the size of the bureau's loss.
Chris Redfern, Democratic leader in the House, issued a news release suggesting that the attorney general should be paying more attention to the investigation.
The scandal kicked off in April with the announcement that the bureau lost million of dollars investing in rare coins through Tom Noe, a coin dealer and Republican fundraiser.
