U.S. Appeal to Delay Trial of Ex-FBI Man

Justice Department prosecutors have notified a federal judge that they believe he erred last month in throwing out most of the evidence against Robert S. Friedrick, the indicted former FBI agent accused of making false statements about his dealings with Teamsters President Jackie Presser in an alleged payroll-padding operation.

Department attorneys, in a court statement made public Monday, said they will appeal the order of U.S. District Judge George H. Revercomb, who ruled on Dec. 4 that prosecutors had improperly obtained self-incriminating statements from Friedrick last January.

Right to Remain Silent

The judge decided that Friedrick was not fully advised of his right to remain silent and hire an attorney.

The appeal means that Friedrick’s trial, which had been scheduled to begin next week, will be delayed indefinitely while the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia considers whether to reinstate evidence that Friedrick lied about his relationship with Presser.

Because Friedrick’s statements are considered crucial to his prosecution, department attorneys have indicated that they will not try him if the appellate court refuses to reinstate the evidence.

Ruling Expected

The attorneys said a ruling is expected within four to six months--after the court studies additional legal briefs and hears arguments from opposing attorneys.

Some government investigators said privately Monday that the development in Friedrick’s case might also delay Presser’s trial in Cleveland, which has not yet been scheduled. They noted that the department long has planned to try Friedrick before Presser, on grounds that Friedrick--if convicted--could be used as a prosecution witness against the Teamster leader.

However, David Margolis, chief of the department’s organized crime and racketeering section, insisted that Friedrick’s case “will have no effect” on the timing of Presser’s trial.

The evidence dismissed by Revercomb involved Friedrick’s admissions to prosecutors that he lied in 1985 when he said that the FBI had authorized Presser, a longtime bureau informant, to hire mob-connected “ghost employees” as part of his efforts to obtain information about organized crime. Government sources have said the FBI never granted such authorization.

Based on those admissions, Friedrick was indicted by a federal grand jury last May on charges that he had made false statements to government investigators. The indictment said Friedrick lied as part of a scheme to keep Presser from being indicted for misusing Teamster funds to pay the non-working ghost employees.

Presser was indicted on May 16 on charges that he siphoned off $700,000 in union funds to pay the alleged ghost workers.