Prosecutor: Sleuth to stars was 'well paid thug'

LOS ANGELES, California (AP) -- Private investigator Anthony Pellicano was a "well-paid thug" who dug up dirt through wiretaps and other illegal means to benefit his Hollywood A-list clientele, a federal prosecutor told jurors Tuesday.

In his closing argument, Assistant U.S. Attorney Dan Saunders said jurors had been taken inside Pellicano's world during the two-month trial and shown how he illegally collected information for clients to use in legal and other disputes.

"Tires get slashed, computers get hacked, houses get broken into," Saunders said. "And of course, people's phones get wiretapped."

He said Pellicano's detective agency was "nothing more than a criminal organization operated by a well-connected, well-paid thug." Pellicano's nonrefundable retainer fee started at $25,000, the prosecutor said.

Defense attorneys were scheduled to begin making their closing arguments on Wednesday.

Pellicano, 64, and four co-defendants have pleaded not guilty to a variety of charges. Pellicano, who is acting as his own attorney, is accused of leading a criminal enterprise that raked in more than $2 million by spying on Hollywood's rich and famous then supplying the dirt to their rivals.

Saunders said the government had proven its case by presenting documents, testimony from clients and alleged victims, and perhaps most importantly recordings made by the private investigator.

"When you get recordings of defendants engaging in criminal activity, there's not a whole lot they can do to get away from it," Saunders said.

Some of the recordings involved discussions between Pellicano and clients. Others included conversations between the private eye and two of his co-defendants, former Los Angeles police Sgt. Mark Arneson and ex-telephone company worker Rayford Earl Turner.

Only one suspected wiretapped call was played during the trial.

Saunders explained that computers weren't seized during the first of several searches of Pellicano's office because the warrant did not target the alleged wiretapping.

When authorities returned later with another warrant, "Mr. Pellicano had cleaned house," Saunders said.

Saunders called Arneson a "dirty cop" who sold his badge for the $2,500 a month Pellicano is accused of paying him to run names through law enforcement databases.

Saunders showed jurors copies of checks to Pellicano from clients or law firms. He then compared the dates of the payments to a police audit showing when names were run through databases by Arneson. In some cases, names were processed on the same day a payment was given to Pellicano.

He added that family members, friends and business partners of Pellicano's targets also had their names run illegally.

The end result, prosecutors said, was a ruthless campaign by Pellicano to discredit his clients' adversaries and ruin their credibility when it was addressed in child custody, divorce and other legal battles.

Thanks to the wiretapping, Pellicano's "side knew everything the other side did," Saunders told jurors.

U.S. District Judge Dale Fischer expects closing arguments to take about two days, with the jury likely to get the case later this week.

Comedian Chris Rock and one-time power agent Michael Ovitz testified during the trial about using the services of Pellicano. Both said they knew nothing about his tactics.

Comedian Garry Shandling, an alleged victim, also took the witness stand.

Pellicano was accused of wiretapping the phone of Sylvester Stallone, but the "Rocky" star did not testify. E-mail to a friend

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