BEN COMBS

  • BEN COMBS

The Democrat-Gazette’s Debra Hale-Shelton provided a little more insight this morning into past Grand Jury investigations into the University of Central Arkansas during the era of President Lu Hardin. The lead today was news of testimony months ago by a former employee of Combs and Co. State auditors long ago raised questions about possible diversion of money paid to Combs to salary supplements for the football coach, a discovery that led to the departure of a UCA official.

Advertisement

I’d add this from the record: I reported last March that the head of the ad agency, Ben Combs, unavailable for comment to Hale-Shelton yesterday, had been interviewed by the U.S. attorney’s office, but not the grand jury, in the matter. He indicated in March he’d spoken with them voluntarily and freely.

At this point there’s still no confirmation that any continuing investigation in which Hardin has agreed to cooperate concerns the the coach pay deal or something as yet unknown.

Advertisement

Help to Keep Great Journalism Alive in Arkansas

Join the fight for truth and become a subscriber of the Arkansas Times. We've been battling powerful forces for 50 years through our tough, determined, and feisty journalism. With over 63,000 Facebook followers, 58,000 Twitter followers, 35,000 Arkansas blog followers, and 70,000 daily email blasts, our readers value great journalism. But we need your help to do even more. By subscribing and supporting our efforts, you'll not only have access to all of our articles, but you'll also be helping us hire more writers to expand our coverage. Together, we can continue to hold the powerful accountable and bring important stories to light. Subscribe now or donate for as little as $1 and be a part of the Arkansas Times community.

Previous article Tim Griffin laments gridlock in Washington. Really. Next article The Thursday line