Twin Cities technology consultant Johannes Marliem is no stranger to the Como Zoo, local and national political campaigns or controversy. A year after he made headlines for his big donations to such well-known political entities as President Obama and Gov. Mark Dayton, Marliem is once again in the news, this time for donating $10,000 to the Como Zoo and Conservatory's "Como Friends" group.
Marliem, according to his own Twitter profile, is "passionate about the plight of the endangered red haired orangutan." His most recent donation comes on the heels of the birth of Kemala, a female orangutan who was delivered by C-section on Jan. 7 and plans to make Como her permanent home. Marliem hails from Indonesia, just like the Sumatran orangutans, which are officially classified as a critically endangered species. The money will cover her medical bills.
A year ago, Marliem made headlines for much different reasons. Reporters with outfits such as Watchdog.org were questioning whether Obama, Dayton and other Democrats should return his donations, given his 2010 conviction in Hennepin County District Court for theft by swindle, a gross misdemeanor. He had also been charged with issuing a dishonest check.
The charges were later vacated and dismissed.
At the time, Marliem's marketing folks chalked up the charges to little more than a misunderstanding over some bounced checks. "He had a banking issue with a couple of checks, which while he was out of the country, he couldn't correct," said Donald McFarland, who represents both Marliem and his bio-metrics consulting company, on Monday.
His personal problems, which reportedly included foreclosure on his home, didn't stop him from donating to his favorite political and environmental causes around animals and climate change. In 2013, he gave $66,000 to the Como Zoo in honor of Jaya, Kemala's older brother, who turned six years old that year.
His personal website talks up Web-based apps that help consumers make environmentally-friendly purchases, the growing number of restaurant options on St. Paul's Payne Avenue, and zoo efforts to help orangutans raise healthy offspring in St. Paul, Toledo and Fort Wayne.
Marliem was at Como Monday for a naming ceremony dedicated to newborn Kemala, who had remained nameless pending the outcome of a month-long voting effort. Orangutans are indigenous to Borneo and Sumatra, two sites in Indonesia. The baby's name is Indonesian for magic stone.
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