There’s No Evidence to Date to Indict Meese: Prosecutor : But He Says Probe Won’t Stop Before End of Month

Independent counsel James C. McKay said today that there was no evidence “developed to date” to warrant a criminal indictment of Atty. Gen. Edwin Meese III in connection with the Iraq-Jordan pipeline plan or his investment in telephone company stock.

McKay, however, emphasized that his investigation is not complete and will continue at least through this month.

In a one-page statement to counter “recent media reports that an indictment is imminent,” McKay’s office said “the grand jury’s investigation is not yet complete as to these and other matters, and will continue at least through the end of April.”

“If at the end of that period of time there remains insufficient evidence to warrant a prosecution as to these or any other matters . . . the office of independent counsel will issue a report covering all the matters which have been under investigation.”

Top Official Acts

The announcement came after Solicitor General Charles Fried, the top department official remaining after the resignations Tuesday of two key officials and four aides, urged the attorney general to resign for the good of the department.

Fried, who argues for the government in cases before the Supreme Court, said in a statement today that he “felt it was my duty to (Meese) and the department to tell him clearly what course of action I thought he should follow.”

Calls have been mounting on Capitol Hill for Meese to quit. On Wednesday, Senate Democratic leader Robert C. Byrd described Meese as the “crown jewel of the sleaze factor in this Administration.”

No Rush to Judgment

At the Justice Department today, spokesman Terry Eastland said McKay’s announcement “should encourage everyone to continue abiding by the process. . . . I think it behooves all of us to await the final determination of the independent counsel before we make any judgments about either the ethical conduct of the attorney general or any illegalities that have been charged against him.”

In December, McKay’s office issued a similar announcement stating there was insufficient evidence to bring criminal charges against Meese in connection with his efforts to help the scandal-plagued Wedtech Corp. get defense contracts.

The statement issued by McKay’s office today said that “based on the evidence developed to date, (McKay) does not intend to recommend that the grand jury return an indictment against Meese as to the ‘Aqaba pipeline’ matter or as to matters relating to Mr. Meese’s investments, including the so-called ‘Baby Bells’ matter,” the statement said.

AT&T; Breakup Link

Since last spring, McKay has been investigating allegations of wrongdoing by Meese, including ownership of stock in companies created by the breakup of AT&T; when he was in a position to make policy affecting the telecommunications industry.

Meese as attorney general met with executives of four of the regional Bell Telephone companies at a time when he owned $14,000 worth of stock in the Baby Bells, raising conflict-of-interest questions.

At the time, the Bell companies were seeking a reversal of the Justice Department’s position opposing the Bells’ expansion into new areas of business. Meese ended up approving a reversal of the department’s position early in 1987 in accordance with the companies’ wishes.

In addition to the so-called Baby Bells stock, McKay has been investigating whether Meese conspired with San Francisco lawyer E. Bob Wallach and others to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act in connection with an alleged scheme to pay the Israeli government and members of that country’s Labor Party to protect a proposed $1-billion oil pipeline from military attack by Israel.