Court Records Link Barry Aide, FBI Sting
A top aide to Mayor Marion Barry allegedly promised to deliver a city contract to an undercover FBI agent posing as a private contractor if the man first contributed to Barry’s 1986 reelection effort, according to court documents unsealed Friday.
The official, former city human services head David E. Rivers, allegedly told an undercover FBI agent during an October, 1986, meeting that he would be awarded a contract if he contributed money to a Barry reelection fund-raising effort Rivers was organizing in Atlanta.
According to the court records, Rivers said: “Ya’ll just do this,” gesturing to invitations to the fund raiser, “It’s (the contract) done right now.”
The court records were unsealed after a hearing in which a federal judge denied a request by Rivers and prominent city contractor John Clyburn that wiretap evidence gathered against them be suppressed in their trial on bribery and conspiracy charges.
The accusations against Rivers and Clyburn are the latest in a long string that have been lodged against people close to the mayor.
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