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**LoboLoco** · 06-29-2002, 12:21 PM

the kanasa city paper has the story too. Here it is:

Federal jury convicts local man in Costa Rican bribery scheme
By MATT CAMPBELL
The Kansas City Star

A federal jury on Monday convicted a Kansas City man of conspiring and participating in a scheme to bribe politicians and government officials in Costa Rica.

The weeklong trial in U.S. District Court in Kansas City was unusual in that it involved an intention to corrupt foreign officials, grandiose plans to build a new port city on the Caribbean Sea and taped evidence from a dead man.

The Costa Rican ambassador to the United States, Jaime Daremblum, has said government officials were not involved in what he called "a fantasy concocted to swindle Americans."

The defendant, Robert Richard King, 68, had no comment after the verdict.

"On behalf of Mr. King, obviously we are disappointed in the verdict," said defense attorney Michael Pasano. "We do intend to pursue, through post trial motions and appeal, our attack on what we feel was an unfair prosecution by the government. We will do whatever it takes."

The defense had argued that King was a victim of a con artist who orchestrated a fraudulent investment scheme and then siphoned off money for cars, jewelry and strippers.

But the jurors believed the government's case: that King conspired with Owl Securities & Investment, a Kansas City company, to pay as much as $1.5 million in bribes to Costa Rican officials. The quid pro quo was a land concession of 50-square miles on the Caribbean coast, according to secret tape recordings made at the behest of the FBI.

King was interested in the land to develop a huge port and marine salvage operation to be complemented by an office and resort complex and a "dry canal" to move goods over land as an alternative to the Panama Canal.

King did not testify, and the defense put on no other witnesses.

King was convicted of one count of conspiracy and four of violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. Senior U.S. District Judge Scott O. Wright did not set a sentencing date. King remains free on bond. Philip Urofsky, the Justice Department's senior counsel for international litigation, said he believed the penalty range for King was three to five years.

A second indicted defendant, Pablo Barquero Hernandez of Costa Rica, remains a fugitive.

Two officers of Owl Securities, Albert Reitz and Richard Halford, have pleaded guilty to conspiracy and await sentencing. The government agreed to recommend lighter sentences for them in exchange for their testimony against King.

Some of the trial's most important evidence came from the former president of Owl Securities, Stephen Kingsley, who died in October 2000. He secretly recorded many meetings with King and others that detailed the bribery scheme.

The conspirators used several code words and phrases for their intended bribe, including closing costs, a toll and a kiss.

In a June 2, 2000, meeting, King and Halford discussed setting up a $1 million escrow account for the closing costs to Costa Rican politicians, according to the tapes.

"Assuming the room's not bugged," King said, "let's talk a different thing. What we're doing is...proving that we have the ability to bribe them properly."

King even agreed to the idea of allotting another $500,000 for the opposition political party in case it won upcoming elections.

During his closing argument, Pasano displayed for jurors a poster-sized glossy portrait of Kingsley to focus their attention on the person he said was the real criminal. Pasano called him "the devil incarnate."

He contended that Kingsley cooperated with the FBI to reduce his own exposure to prosecution and manipulated bureau agents as well as King by encouraging his colleagues to speak on tape about bribes. The closing cost was never paid and the deal never consummated.

"Just being foolish enough to talk about it? Not enough," Pasano told the jurors in his closing argument.

It turned out that three hours of deliberation were enough for the jurors to return a guilty verdict. Each juror, polled individually, affirmed the verdict.

**brink** · 06-30-2002, 12:32 PM

So is their a major bookmaker in jail related to this??

**LoboLoco** · 07-01-2002, 09:49 AM

Not related to this story, but it is apparently true that a bookmaker was picked up down for some minor, non-gambling, offense. The guy must not have had bribe money on him!

**Dragon** · 07-01-2002, 11:59 AM

Is that all it takes to get out of a jam in Costa Rica? Bribe money?

**LoboLoco** · 07-01-2002, 12:11 PM

not much can't be bought here.

traffic stop - $20-$30
drunk traffic stop - $50
traffic stop with no papers for car - $100
drunk traffic stop with no papers for car - $150
no ID $30

**Woodstock** · 07-03-2002, 10:21 AM

Yes, it's easy to get out of a traffic violation in CR as well as anywhere else in the world. But when the FBI and Interpol are involved, no bribe money is enough. Not looking good for the old man.

WS

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FBI picks up US bookmaker.....

FBI picks up US bookmaker.....

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