SGI member's multi-million dollar scam

Sydney Daily Telegraph,

Sept 26 2001

COURT JESTER'S SCAM NO LAUGHING MATTER

An American Buddhist claiming to be the world's only official

court jester has sparked a political row in the Kingdom of Tonga

over millions of missing dollars.

The row centers on the disappearance of money that the Pacific

Island nation made selling citizenship to Chinese.

The nation's tiny legislative assembly launched moves this week

to impeach minister implicated in the scandal, which goes right

up to King Taufa'ahau Topou IV and his son, Crown Prince

Tupuoto'a.

About $40 million is missing - a huge amount in a kingdom which

has an annual government budget of 86 million paanga ($78

million).

The saga centers on Jesse Bogdonoff, from North Carolina, a

businessman who also sells magnets to cure back pain, who

invested the money on behalf of Tonga.

So impressed was the King, he issued a royal decree proclaiming

Mr. Bogdonoff court jester. ***In turn, Mr. Bogdonoff, a member

of Japan's richest lay Buddhist organization, the Soka Gakkai

International, *** had the group give the King a humanitarian

award and an honorary doctorate.***

But now the kingdom cannot find the millions, apparently

moved by Mr. Bogdonoff from the US bank in which it was held.

"It looks like the money has all gone, it looks like we are the

laughing stock of the world again," said member of parliament

Teisina Fuko, who is spearheading moves to get to the bottom

of the scandal.

The money was made in the late 1980s when Hong Kong

businessman George Chen won royal approval to sell Tongan

citizenship and special passports to mainly Asians, particularly

Hong Kong Chinese then worried about the handover to China.

Among the first to get them were then exiled Filipino president

Ferdinand Marcos, his wife Imelda and their daughters.