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>Billie Sol's low bond was based in part on a financial statement listing his net worth at $13.7 million that was submitted in February 1961 by Winn P. Jackson, a Lubbock, Texas, certified public accountant. But Jackson testified that the statement actually had been drawn up by Billie Sol himself. Jackson said that when he told Estes he would have to check into the facts before he could approve the statement, Billie Sol replied: "Why? There's nothing wrong with it. The only place it's going is somewhere up in the Agriculture Department." Said Jackson: "Everybody thought he was such a Christian gentleman, and with his wide reputation, I made the mistake of believing him." After adding a mild warning that he had not made a complete audit of Estes' holdings, Jackson obediently put the statement on his stationery, sent it back to Estes—and a week later got a check for $6,000. After Estes was arrested, Jackson destroyed his copies of the balance sheet at the request of one of Billie Sol's men. Said Jackson of the whole affair: "Evidently I was taken in by a man that was a little smarter than I was."
The congressional hearings were hardly under way before Republican subcommittee members began clamoring for more exciting witnesses, including Billie Sol himself. Chairman L. H. Fountain, figuring that Estes would only take the Fifth Amendment, had no immediate plans for calling Billie Sol. Still, with Senator John McClellan preparing to hold hearings, two grand juries at work in Texas, and 76 FBI agents on the prowl, there seemed every reason to agree with Fountain's forecast: "I think Mr. Estes is likely to find a place in history as one of the most, if not the most, thoroughly investigated individuals of all time."