October 22, 2008

McCain helped businessman buy Fort Ord land for a fraction of its market value

MONTEREY -- An Arizona businessman, with help from Sen. John McCain's office, paid the federal government a mere fraction of the market value when he bought a Fort Ord land parcel in 1999, an Army appraisal obtained by The Monterey Herald shows.

Donald R. Diamond, an 80-year-old real estate developer, lobbyist and top fundraiser for McCain's presidential campaign, bought the land for $250,000, though it was valued at $7.2 million, according to Pentagon appraisals made three years before the sale.

He held on to the parcel for a little more than two years before selling it and the buildings on it for an estimated profit of more than $18 million. read more

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