A veteran federal prosecutor recruited onto special counsel Robert
Mueller's team is known for a skill that may come in handy in the investigation
of potential ties between
Russia and U.S. President Donald Trump's 2016
campaign team: persuading witnesses to turn on friends, colleagues and
superiors.
Andrew Weissmann, who headed the U.S. Justice Department's criminal
fraud section before joining Mueller's team last month, is best known for two
assignments - the investigation of now-defunct energy company Enron and
organized crime cases in Brooklyn, New York - that depended heavily on gaining
witness cooperation.
Securing the cooperation of people close to Trump, many of whom have
been retaining their own lawyers, could be important for Mueller, who was named
by the Justice Department as special counsel on May 17 and is investigating,
among other issues, whether Trump himself has sought to obstruct justice. Trump
has denied allegations of both collusion and obstruction.
"Flipping" witnesses is a common, although not always
successful, tactic in criminal prosecutions.
Robert Ray, who succeeded Kenneth Starr as the independent counsel
examining former President Bill Clinton, noted that Trump's fired former
national security advisor, Michael Flynn, has already offered through his
lawyer to testify before Congress in exchange for immunity, suggesting
potential willingness to cooperate as a witness.
"It would seem to me the time is now to make some decisions about
what you have and what leverage can be applied to get the things you don't
have," Ray said, referring to Mueller's team.
Trump, Vice President Mike Pence, Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner and
others close to the president already have hired their own lawyers to help
navigate Mueller's expanding probe and ongoing congressional investigations.
Kathryn Ruemmler, who served as White House counsel under former
President Barack Obama, said Weissmann is willing to take risks to secure
witness testimony that other prosecutors might not. Ruemmler worked with
Weissmann on the Justice Department's Enron task force that investigated the
massive corporate fraud that led to the company's 2001 collapse.
Ruemmler recalled that Weissmann had a hunch that former Enron
treasurer Ben Glisan would be willing to talk despite already having pleaded
guilty without agreeing to cooperate. So Weissmann had U.S. marshals bring
Glisan before the grand jury from prison, Ruemmler said.
'NOT AFRAID TO LOSE'
Other prosecutors might have feared Glisan's testimony could contradict
their theory of the case, Ruemmler said, but Weissmann's gamble paid off when
the former executive became a key witness.
"He's not afraid to lose, and that is sometimes an unusual quality,"
Ruemmler said of Weissmann.
Weissmann also led lengthy negotiations with lawyers for Andrew Fastow,
Enron's former chief financial officer and a star prosecution witness in the
case, gaining leverage from the fact that prosecutors had indicted Fastow's
wife, also a former Enron employee, on tax fraud charges.
Both pleaded guilty, and Fastow testified against former Enron CEO
Jeffrey Skilling, who was convicted in 2006.
Fastow declined to comment. Glisan could not be reached for comment.
Representatives for Mueller and the Trump legal team declined to comment.
Critics have said say Weissmann's hardball approach can lead to
prosecutorial overreach. A number of Enron convictions were overturned on
appeal, and Skilling's 24-year sentence was later reduced by 10 years.
Defense lawyer Tom Kirkendall, who represented clients related to the
Enron case, said the task force intimidated witnesses and misinterpreted the
law.
But Sam Buell, a former prosecutor who was a member of the Enron task
force, called such criticism routine in high-stakes cases.
Mueller has several other highly experienced lawyers on his team,
including U.S. Deputy Solicitor General Michael Dreeben. Trump has also been
building a legal team led by New York lawyer Marc Kasowitz, with veteran
Washington defense lawyer John Dowd recently coming aboard.
Before his work relating to Enron, Weissmann served as a federal
prosecutor in the organized crime bureau in Brooklyn. In 1997, he and trial
partner George Stamboulidis brought down one of the country's most powerful mob
bosses, Vincent "the Chin" Gigante, with the help of turncoat
witnesses.
"We cut our teeth in the organized crime section," said
Stamboulidis, now in private practice. "And the only way you can make
those cases is to get people to cooperate, even when the oath of Omerta (a
Mafia code of silence and non-cooperation with authorities) was strong and in
full play."
REUTERS
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