"Can you hear it?

That giant rushing water sound.

It's millions of dollars in Navajo Nation loans, $3.5 million to be exact, getting sucked down the drain with nothing to show for it except those ever-popular groundbreaking ceremonies.

Native American Bank in Denver and JP Morgan Chase have called loans after two Navajo businesses failed to make payments, and both banks have indicated they are ready to collect, said LoRenzo Bates, who sits on the Navajo Tribal Council's Budget and Finance Committee.

The companies, Biochemical Decontamination Systems Manufacturing Inc. and Diné Poultry Products, both are in danger of defaulting on their loans. The combined loss will consume more than half of the Navajo Dam Escrow Account, which is valued at about $6 million.

"The loans have already been called," Bates said."

Get the Story:
Editorial: Navajo Nation squanders $3.5 million in loan busts (The Farmington Daily Times 12/17)

Related Stories:
Navajo Nation faces $3.5M loss over failed loans (12/10)