Hardin, Montana information thread
By xfahctor
@xfahctor (14118)
Lancaster, New Hampshire
October 1, 2009 6:27pm CST
I started this thread to collect and disect all information concerning the developing bizzare situation in Harding Montana.
It is still very unclear as to what is going on, but I feel it is extremely important, not only to the town of Hardin ,but to the nation itself, as this company, this "american police force" has stated through their spokeswoman, that this is not to be unique to this one town and they have intentions of starting such operations in other areas of the country.
3 people like this
4 responses
@AngryKittyMSV (4317)
• United States
2 Oct 09
I am going to paste the information I gathered through my research and posted in Annie's discussion earlier today below so anyone interested may see for themselves what's been going on:
I spent a good chunk of my day today researching the strange doings in Harding, Montana and the deeper I dug the weirder it got! I've been posting it on my facebook just to keep track of it and see what others think, so forgive any FB thingies attached to the links. Here's some of what I found so far if you want to take the time to check it out:
Montana Legislators don';t know what;s going on and are demanding information:
http://www.greatfallstribune.com/article/20090930/NEWS01/909300309/Lawmakers-want-information-on-secretive-Hardin-Jail-deal
The guy running the mysterious company which rolled into town in black Mercedes SUVs emblazoned with "Harding Police" on them (despite the fact that Harding HAS NO Police force) is a mysterious individual in his own right and by all indications, quite shady! He's got at least 17 aliases, has a reputation of questionable business practices, and has had judgments against him totaling over a million dollars:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/01/AR2009100100803.html?referrer=facebook
There's a picture of the "Harding Police" emblem along with a story about what's been going on here:
http://rawstory.com/blog/2009/09/mysterious-unregistered-security-firm-policing-montana-town/
and some background on what may have led up t the strange events in that little town (along with some more background info on that agency and some other interesting stuff):
http://www.examiner.com/x-14766-Charleston-Ron-Paul-Examiner~y2009m9d30-Hardin-Montana-tip-of-the-iceberg
I'm not quite sure what to make of all of it, and I plan to keep looking, but that's what I found so far.
1 person likes this
@debrakcarey (19887)
• United States
2 Oct 09
An attorney for American Police Force, Maziar Mafi, describes the Santa Ana, Calif., company as a fledgling spin-off of a major security firm founded in 1984. But Mafi declined to name the parent firm or provide details on how the company will finance its jail operations.
"It will gradually be more clear as things go along," said Mafi, a personal injury and medical malpractice lawyer in Santa Ana who was only hired by American Police Force a month ago. "The nature of this entity is private security and for security purposes, as well as for the interest of their clientele, that's why they prefer not to be upfront."
Mafi also said (from Raw Story Link) Mafi, the American Police Force attorney, said his company intends to reverse Hardin's recent problems with the jail and give the town an economic boost.
Where are they getting the money to do this? It' either the largest scam happening or one big front for something else...it takes bucks to do this, doesn't it?
1 person likes this
@xfahctor (14118)
• Lancaster, New Hampshire
2 Oct 09
"Mafi also said (from Raw Story Link) Mafi, the American Police Force attorney, said his company intends to reverse Hardin's recent problems with the jail and give the town an economic boost."
The problem with his staement is they have also said 90% of their work force are international workers
2 people like this
@AngryKittyMSV (4317)
• United States
2 Oct 09
Here's more:
The Montana Attorney general is looking into it...
http://www.cnbc.com/id/33131009
excerpt (bold highlights added by me):
Company in deal with city is headed by a convicted felon with fraud history
BILLINGS, Mont. - Montana's attorney general launched an investigation Thursday into a California company that wants to take over an empty jail in the rural city of Hardin, following revelations that the company's lead figure is a convicted felon with a history of fraud.
Michael Hilton, who formed Santa Ana, Calif.-based American Police Force in March, came to Hardin last month promising to fill the city's never-used jail and build a large military and law enforcement training center.
Hilton has a decades-long track record of fraudulent activities and spent several years in a California prison on grand theft charges. A native of Montenegro, he uses at least 17 aliases.
Citing "significant concerns" about the city's dealings with American Police Force, Attorney General Steve Bullock asked Hardin economic development officials to produce by Oct. 12 all documents related to their dealings with the company.
His office made a similar demand of American Police Force, including information that would back up Hilton's claims of multiple defense contracts with the U.S government and other agencies.
(read entire article @ above posted link)
1 person likes this
@anniepa (27955)
• United States
2 Oct 09
Thank you for this, X, because I think this may turn out to be a VERY big story and I can't make head nor tails of it so far. I'm sorry to take up space and waste your time here but for now I'm going to just read this and take it all in.
Annie
1 person likes this
@xfahctor (14118)
• Lancaster, New Hampshire
2 Oct 09
no problem annie, all are welcome, even if it is only to comment. I would agrea, this is a huge story, at least so far anyway. I might even say "well, it's montana, why should i care", but they have said they wanted to branch out and offer their services to other us towns as well.
The worst aspects of this whole thing is the shady nature of the company and the secrecy. who are these people? who are they fronting for? How high does this go, is this a city issue? are there federal strings in it? there is just too much unknown and intentionaly being hidden and they aren't hiding that they are hiding things. the owner of the company isn't even using his real name, he is using one of his aliases.
i am not quite ready to start labling this as a federaly connected action, so far it doesn't point that way entirely. But, then again, nothing seems to be pointing anywhere yet. It's pretty confusing. Anyway, thanks for taking the time to read through and responding.
1 person likes this
@AngryKittyMSV (4317)
• United States
2 Oct 09
I welcome your thoughts too, Annie, after you've had a chance to digest some of this crazy stuff.
1 person likes this
@Sourceseeker (1197)
• United States
4 Oct 09
Ok whats up in Hardin XFactor? Help us to understand.
1 person likes this
@Sourceseeker (1197)
• United States
10 Oct 09
Sorry it took so long to get back to you X. Sounds like things in Hardin could dubious but I think the AG and Federal attorney should at it if it turns to be correct and in oredr then let them do their thing. Security is important but justice is more important. Keep a watchful eye on it.
@spalladino (17891)
• United States
2 Oct 09
I'm glad you're doing this, x, because until tonight I hadn't heard anything about this. I would love to know how this company is able to get away with this so that they can be stopped in their tracks before they're able to spread into other communities. What I've read tonight is outrageous.
1 person likes this
