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Private Detective admits ID theft |
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Saturday, 13 January 2007 |
Federal prosecutors were yesterday close to securing their first conviction in their investigation of Hewlett-Packard’s spying scandal after a private investigator agreed to plead guilty to charges that he posed as a reporter to get phone records for the company’s internal inquiry into boardroom leaks.
Bryan Wagner, 29, of Littleton, Colorado, agreed to plead guilty to identification theft and conspiracy in return for a reduced sentence.
This would give prosecutors their first victory as they seek to convict the masterminds of Hewlett-Packard’s investigation into damaging boardroom leaks around the time that Carly Fiorina was ousted as chairman in 2005.
Stephen Naratil, Mr Wagner’s lawyer, said: “He’s accepting full responsibility for his actions, although he never thought or intended that they were illegal. He was just doing a job, doing work that he was assured was above board.”
Mr Wagner and two other detectives, Ronald DeLia and Matthew DePante, are accused of using a method known as “pretexting” to obtain phone records of people they were investigating by impersonating them.
Mr Wagner worked for Action Research Group of Melbourne, Florida, which was hired by Mr DeLia. Mr DeLia and Mr DePante have both pleaded not guilty to conspiracy, fraud and identity theft.
Patricia Dunn, HP’s former chairman, and Kevin Hunsaker, the former ethics director, face the same charges and have also pleaded not guilty.
The federal conspiracy charge against Mr Wagner carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison, while the maximum sentence for aggravated identity theft is two years. He is hoping to secure a reduced sentence in return for agreeing to testify against his colleagues, whom Mr Naratil said issued Mr Wagner with his orders.
Mr Naratil added: “He’s just the little guy who was used by these other people who had a lot more knowledge of the conduct he was performing.
“That’s why they didn’t do it. That’s why they passed it off to someone who would do it. It’s a classic case of pass the buck.”
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Last Updated ( Saturday, 13 January 2007 )
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