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Dead Cow Conspiracy Rocks Railroad
KRQE, New Mexico ^
| 8/01/03
| KRQE Staff
Posted on 08/01/2003 11:28:06 PM PDT by Pro-Bush
Dead Cow Conspiracy Rocks Railroad
Dead cows and horses all over the tracks. Thats what Louann Lodwick claimed the Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad trains were doing to her livestock. She sent them claim from counties all over the state and from the San Felipe Reservation. She claimed her animals--- sometime whole herds of them, were on the railroad right-of-way when they were leveled by locomotives.
So the railroad wrote out 43 checks for more than $144,400.
Lodwick started slow, claiming one dead horse in December 2001. BNSF paid $1600 for that animal. The claims escalated quickly to three cows and a calf. Last April, she claimed a train rampaged through a whole herd, killing six cows in one collision. In ten days last spring, she claimed $11,000 worth of dead horses.
I can tell you we have never had a situation that I am aware of similar to this, said BNSF spokeswoman Lena Kent.
So how did Lodwick get away with it?
BNSF investigators say her husband was the claims representative for the railroad and he wrote her the checks. Or he did, until one of his clerks blew the whistle, so to speak. Investigators moved in and connected the dots between Lodwick and claims representative Scott Waterman of Albuquerque.
Now, Waterman and his wife, Lue Ann Lodwick Turnquist Waterman, are in jail, facing 43 embezzlement counts and conspiracy. Both are being held on $100,000 bonds.
Meanwhile, the railroad continues its investigation, trying to confirm any of those claims with engineers, especially that one about the whole herd of cows. Although the equipment is very large, if there were a herd of cows or horses that could come in front of the locomotive, the engineer would know, said Kent.
Mrs. Waterman is identified as a corrections officer, working for the New Mexico Central Correctional Facility in Los Lunas. Officials there say they will investigate and decide if she will be put on leave following her arrest.
The railroad has not said what it will do to Waterman.
Investigators say Waterman originally told them he paid the claims without question because he said Lodwick was a Native American, and he had been trained to pay those claims quickly to keep up good relationships with the reservations.
TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Extended News
KEYWORDS: deadcow
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Good grief!
1
posted on
08/01/2003 11:28:06 PM PDT
by
Pro-Bush
To: Pro-Bush
Welcome-to-New-Mexico bump!
2
posted on
08/02/2003 12:11:09 AM PDT
by
Slings and Arrows
(The Hussein Family Reunion: Coming soon to a mortuary near you.)
To: Pro-Bush
Time to put video cams on the cattle catchers!
To: rockfish59
Time to put video cams on the cattle catchers!
Ridiculus isn't it?
4
posted on
08/02/2003 12:25:03 AM PDT
by
Pro-Bush
(Circumstances rule destiny)
To: rockfish59
Time to put video cams on the cattle catchers!
Ridiculus isn't it?
5
posted on
08/02/2003 12:26:48 AM PDT
by
Pro-Bush
(Circumstances rule destiny)
To: Pro-Bush
6
posted on
08/02/2003 12:31:06 AM PDT
by
Slings and Arrows
(The Hussein Family Reunion: Coming soon to a mortuary near you.)
To: Slings and Arrows
Cool!
7
posted on
08/02/2003 12:41:44 AM PDT
by
Pro-Bush
(Circumstances rule destiny)
To: Pro-Bush
Investigators say Waterman originally told them he paid the claims without question because he said Lodwick was a Native American, and he had been trained (bad pun?) to pay those claims quickly to keep up good relationships with the reservations.HMmmmmmmmm...............
And just think....
We have MILLIONS of people being 'trained' in a similar fashion in our PC schools, businesses and media.......
8
posted on
08/02/2003 5:34:02 AM PDT
by
Elsie
(Don't believe every prophecy you hear: especially *** ones........)
To: Elsie
This is an udder disaster!! The BNSF has been railroaded and cowed into making these payments. It's all a lot of bull if you ask me, even though I have nothing at steak here.
9
posted on
08/02/2003 6:21:26 AM PDT
by
speedy
To: speedy
Very punny Speedy very punny indeed.
10
posted on
08/02/2003 6:35:59 AM PDT
by
Nebr FAL owner
(.308 "reach out and thump someone " & .50 cal Browning "reach out & CRUSH someone")
To: speedy
Milking the system.
To: speedy
Not bad! Not bad! A pun in the sun is fun.
12
posted on
08/02/2003 6:40:07 AM PDT
by
AEMILIUS PAULUS
(Further, the statement assumed)
To: Nebr FAL owner
Thank you. Don't want to steer this in the wrong direction.
13
posted on
08/02/2003 6:40:08 AM PDT
by
speedy
To: Tijeras_Slim
I've got no beef with that.
14
posted on
08/02/2003 6:40:38 AM PDT
by
speedy
To: AEMILIUS PAULUS
Especially when one does it on the run.
15
posted on
08/02/2003 6:41:45 AM PDT
by
speedy
To: speedy
My beef is that they were obviously trying to horn in on some of BNSF's profits. This really angus me.
16
posted on
08/02/2003 6:42:07 AM PDT
by
Harold Hill
(I always think there's a band, kid)
To: Harold Hill
It took BNSF too long to track this down. I don't know what kind of people they heifer employees.
17
posted on
08/02/2003 6:45:41 AM PDT
by
speedy
To: speedy
I'd herd about this before, but it seemed like bull.
To: speedy
A pun in the sun is fun, especially if made on the run!
19
posted on
08/02/2003 6:49:11 AM PDT
by
AEMILIUS PAULUS
(Further, the statement assumed)
To: Tijeras_Slim
I think we're horsing around with this too much and missing the mane point.
20
posted on
08/02/2003 6:49:52 AM PDT
by
speedy
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