SALT LAKE CITY -- A lawyer for convicted fraudster Marc Sessions Jenson claimed he received a "veiled threat" over the weekend as the investigations into Utah Attorney General John Swallow continue to swirl around him.
During a hearing in 3rd District Court, Jenson lawyer Marcus Mumford said a colleague of his had received a "disturbing call" from chief deputy Utah Attorney General Kirk Torgensen.
"He advised us to 'be careful,'" Mumford told the judge, but added that Torgensen had indicated he was disgusted with the actions of his boss, Utah Attorney General John Swallow.
"It's troubling to me," Mumford said.
"It's news to me," assistant Utah Attorney General Scott Reed replied in court.
Outside of court, Mumford said he took it as a threat.
"I think it's time the people of Utah stop letting their prosecutors act like thugs," he told reporters.
Torgensen denied the allegations in comments to FOX 13 on Monday.
"I absolutely did not make a threat. I was simply having a conversation with a friend (who works in that firm)," he said. "I simply asked that people in my office be treated fairly and with respect throughout this. The actions of the line prosecutors and investigators have been by the book, have been done correctly and are above reproach."
Jenson was in court for a scheduling hearing on a motion his lawyers have filed seeking to have the Utah Attorney General's Office disqualified from prosecuting him on fraud charges accusing him of bilking investors out of millions in a failed ski resort deal.
Jenson is already serving prison time on securities fraud charges.
Jenson has accused Swallow and former Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff of a "shakedown" of gifts, trips and cash as his case was pending. Swallow has not denied taking trips to a posh resort on Jenson's dime, but recently said some of the receipts offered as proof were forged.
Judge Elizabeth Hruby-Mills scheduled an Aug. 5 hearing on whether the Utah Attorney General's Office should be disqualified from the prosecution.
