One journalist was killed for his work. Another finished what he started

PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
...""There was no question. It was an immediate yes," Johnson says.

Johnson flew to Las Vegas to start reporting alongside Review-Journal photographer Rachel Aston.

Court documents tucked into folders labeled in pink highlighter sat on German's desk. Johnson picked up there, where he'd left off.

The investigation chronicled an alleged $500 million Ponzi scheme targeting members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, some of whom had emptied their retirement accounts into a sham investment.

The people running the scheme told investors they were loaning money for personal injury settlements, and 90 days later, the loans would be repayed. If investors kept their money invested, they'd supposedly get a 50% annualized return. Some of the people promoting the scheme were Mormon, and it spread through the church by word of mouth. That shared affinity heightened investors' trust.

But there was no real product underlying their investments. Investors got their payments from the funds that new investors paid in, until it all fell apart.

"It was an honor to do this reporting — to honor Jeff German and complete his work," Johnson wrote in a Twitter thread about the story. "I'm proud that his story lives on."...

Good to see that someone finished this. It is sad that a lot of good reporting is disappearing with the demise of local newspapers.

As You Know, That Happened Here In Vegas.
What I'd Like To Know Is What Was Said
And How Their Relationship Started.
Maybe The Bast*rd Deserved It.