Posted by
BLOGASSAULT on Sunday, December 21, 2008 12:13:24 PM
An environmental activist undermined an auction of oil and gas drilling leases Friday by bidding up parcels of land by hundreds of thousands of dollars without any intention of paying for them, a federal official said.
Tim DeChristopher, a 27-year-old University of Utah student, said his plan was to disrupt the auction. He won the bidding on 13 parcels, auction records show, and drove up the price of several other pieces of land.
"I thought I could be effective by making bids, driving up prices for others and winning some bids myself," the Salt Lake City man said.
Some bidders said they were forced to bid thousands of dollars more for their parcels, while others fumed that they lost their bids. Some also said they may reluctantly hold on to their leases - despite the higher cost - out of concern that the parcels might not go up for auction again under President-elect Barack Obama's administration.
Sounds like he accomplished his mission. Would he be considered a terrorist?
Just wondering.