Jury Believes Account of Hostage Deal

A federal jury decided Friday that a businessman was not lying when he said Reagan-Bush campaign officials asked Iranians not to free American hostages until after the 1980 presidential election.

The jury acquitted Richard J. Brenneke of five counts of false declaration to a federal judge in Denver when he made statements describing an alleged 1980 meeting in Paris at which he said the request about the hostages was made.

One of the counts involved Brenneke’s general description of the meeting. He also was found innocent of making false declarations when he said the meeting was attended by the late CIA director William J. Casey and by Donald Gregg, now U.S. ambassador to South Korea, and that he and fellow businessman Heinrich Rupp both worked for the CIA.

Brenneke was not charged in connection with his statement to the judge that Rupp flew George Bush to Paris in 1980. Brenneke testified Thursday that Bush, who was elected vice president later that year, was not at the meeting he attended and he did not see him in Paris.

The unanimous verdict was announced after five hours of deliberation. Brenneke was embraced by his attorney, Michael Scott, and the two men clasped hands.

Outside the courtroom, a smiling Brenneke said: “We told the truth, we told the truth all along and, by God, it was believed.”

Brenneke was indicted on the false declaration charges after he appeared in 1988 as a character witness for Rupp, who was being sentenced for bank fraud in Denver.

In his statements to the judge, Brenneke portrayed Rupp as a friend with whom he worked in Southeast Asia for the CIA proprietary, Air America. He told the judge that he and Rupp had helped arrange the clandestine Paris trip.

Brenneke said there were three meetings about the hostages on Oct. 19 and 20 at the Hotel Florida and Hotel Crillion in Paris. Brenneke told the Denver judge he attended one meeting at the Hotel Florida.

Under federal law, false declaration to a judge is a stronger charge than perjury, which can involve lies to either a judge or jury.