A special prosecutor will investigate allegations that a developer moved forward with a construction project at Indiana Dunes State Park without a permit.
The Northwest Indiana Times reports the Porter County prosecutor made the request because his senior staff members are acquaintances with developer Chuck Williams.
Williams was awarded a potentially lucrative privatization deal by the state to rehab and build out a historic pavilion at the park along Lake Michigan. But construction has stalled and the environmental group Dunes Action says a building on the pavilion grounds was partially demolished without a permit.
Williams didn't immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday.
A judge named Senior Prosecutor David Thomas to the case. He's a former Clay County prosecutor who was appointed state inspector general by then-Gov. Mitch Daniels.