BANKING & FINANCE - March 9, 1993
From Times Staff and Wire Reports
Charles W. Knapp Pleads Innocent: Knapp, whose American Savings & Loan was the largest thrift ever to fail, pleaded innocent to charges he defrauded another collapsed S&L; by lying to obtain a $15-million unsecured loan that was never repaid. His lawyer insisted that prosecutors are criminalizing what was in effect a character loan to a start-up mortgage banking business. Phoenix-based Western Savings knew all the important financial details about Knapp and the deal, attorney John J. Bartko said.
