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Kyle Hopkins

Kyle Hopkins writes about Anchorage city government and politics. He covered last year's campaign for governor, and has blogged extensively about Alaska politics for the past year. He grew up in Southeast Alaska and was a reporter at the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner and Anchorage Press. E-mail Kyle at khopkins@adn.com

Sean Cockerham

Sean Cockerham writes about Alaska state politics. He spent three years based in Juneau for the Daily News before joining the Tacoma News-Tribune two years ago to write about Washington state politics. He went to Iraq twice for the News Tribune, and previously wrote about Alaska government and politics for the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. Now he's back in Anchorage. E-mail Sean at scockerham@adn.com

Erika Bolstad

Erika Bolstad covers Alaska issues, including the congressional delegation, from Washington, D.C., for McClatchy Newspapers. Before joining the bureau this summer, she spent seven years as a reporter at the Miami Herald, where she covered politics, government and the state legislature. E-mail Erika at ebolstad@adn.com.

The last hour of testimony: Breakfast and blackmail

Posted by Alaska_Politics

Posted: September 13, 2007 - 4:58 pm

From Kyle in Anchorage:

On Aug. 30 of last year, Bill Allen thought he was meeting up with Sen. Fred Dyson for breakfast. Instead, he ended up spending the day with federal investigators.

That’s how Allen described the day he learned of the FBI’s case against him. (Adds some context to this morning’s encounter between Dyson and Allen that Michael Carey reported, huh?)

"Fred Dyson asked me to go to breakfast ... he whipped over on the road and said, 'You need to talk to these people and so they started knocking on the window of the pickup," Allen said. It wasn't clear where they where.

Also in the last hour of testimony today, Allen said Veco sold for more than $400 million. Allen owned a five percent share, while his three kids split another 80 percent of the company.

Kott’s lawyer, Jim Wendt, asked a line of questions that looked to show that the feds had Allen over a barrel. At one point, he brought up Allen’s nephew, who Allen is on bad terms with.

Wendt asked if the nephew had been involved in some kind of blackmail. “Yes,” Allen said.

The questions turned to whether Allen had somehow threatened to kill the nephew or have him killed, and whether investigators might use that against Allen.

Allen said he didn’t make such a threat. “Not me, no. I told them (him?) I’d beat the shit out of him,” Allen said.

Later, he said: “I never did say that I would kill him. No. I wouldn’t have done that … because his mother is my sister.”

As the day came to an end. Allen sometimes looked irritated. At one point, Wendt was asking about $1,000 that Allen gave to Kott. The questions revolved around whether the money was re-imbursment for a donation Kott made to Gov. Frank Murkowski -- and if Kott asked for the payment.
After a series of similar questions, Allen raised his hand a little. “He didn’t ask it. I just gave it to him. … God damn.”

A few more thoughts:

-- The lawyers aren’t allowed to ask Allen about certain details of other cases he’s involved in. On the day he called Kott, to ask about money that went to Kott’s son, who else did Allen call? What other investigations are still in the works?

-- Throughout the testimony, Allen sounded proud of his company, and talked about taking the hit for Veco so the company wouldn’t face charges itself. “I knew that I would pay the price personally, and I didn’t care what happens to me. I thought about those people (workers) and I thought about my kids.”

-- Allen said the bonus program - in which Veco execs got money that they were to spend on political donations and, Allen said, charities - was set up by Veco exec Pete Leathard. If you ever look through old APOC records, you’ll often see five or six Veco officials giving large checks to the same candidate on the same day.

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10 May 6, 2008 - 4:14pm | porn

dede

9 April 17, 2008 - 12:18pm | sniffsmith

I would wish that the FBI

_______________________
spatiu de vanzare

8 September 15, 2007 - 4:30pm | lawschoolgrad

HOW ABOUT THE REST OF THE CBC?

Ms. LMA ( a current legislator )may have consistantly interviewed state officials and developed recommendations for the renovation and asbestos removal at the old API while a legislator.

It is rumored she made significant recommendations for remediation of asbestos and assisted in the development of a plan to siphon State money to the new owner through the Alaska Mental Health Trust Authority. She recommended that the new owners of API structure a flexible payment schedule by drawing the Mental Health Trust Authority into the hazardous waste remediation and removal of the old API facility.

She apparently recommended that while a cash payment directly from the State of Alaska to the owner(aka ___________ hospital) of the old API property may draw raised eyebrows, an annual 1 million dollar payment from the State to the Mental Health Trust Authority most likely would not. Thus the money would go from the State coffers to the Alaska Mental Health Trust Authority and then to ________ Hospital.

Should this be correct and not rumor, would it be a conspiracy to launder state funds to a non profit organization?

Now I am just a dumb hick, but it sounds as if someone was using confidential state information to facilitate payments in the millions of dollars to _____________ hospital.

I have heard that she used her "close relationships" with a current and former Commissioner, Governor Murkowski, possibly some of his close staff, and others to work to secure funding for this purpose.

Any body out there looking at this little ($10,000,000.00) issue?

Ray Metcalf answer your phone. Ms LMA was and still is a very close personal friend of Veco execs. You need very big chart to comprehend these relationships.

7 September 14, 2007 - 10:28am | akbirdwm

political contribution handouts

"Allen said the bonus program - in which Veco execs got money that they were to spend on political donations and, Allen said, charities - was set up by Veco exec Pete Leathard. If you ever look through old APOC records, you’ll often see five or six Veco officials giving large checks to the same candidate on the same day."

This type of thing is par for the course. It happens all the time, if it isn't illegal it should be. I know for a fact that Bob Penney consistently gives his employees, relatives and other sycophants cash to be given to the representative of Penney's choice campaign. And I'm sure all the rest of the big so-called businessmen in this state and all over the country do the same thing.

The only way to stop corruption of our elected officials by big corporations is to take them out of the equation. All public elections should be funded across the board, publically. No more Corporation dollars influencing what the people want. And, lets reverse the old Roosevelt era decision to treat corporations as citizens.

6 September 14, 2007 - 10:05am | funntimes69

FBI would fully investigate the extent of the relationship

I would wish that the FBI would fully investigate the extent of the relationship between the VECO executives and the gov't of Barbados and their agents,and for them to reveal how much VECO paid these people to get awarded the contract for a prison (something that they have never built before) that is now US $ 100 Million over budget and counting.
We really need this to be fully investigated but then again it may come back to haunt Allen and his clan so maybe they will let it ride having cut a deal with these crooks already.

5 September 13, 2007 - 7:55pm | bozo

why did Allen roll over?

Just curious if anyone has the answer. I mean this guy has (or would have had) more money than dirt to defend himself with high-priced lawyers. He could have drug out any trial against him for years.

Sure they had him on tape, but...lots of CEOs have been caught in much worse (and much larger in terms of cash value) situations.

I'm just really confused as to why he would roll over so quickly and for so little. Any ideas anyone? (Aside from the fact perhaps he's going senile?)

September 14, 2007 - 9:15am | roelkers

plea bargin

His plea bargin kept the feds off of his kids. That is what the deal was. My thought is that the state can bring similar charges where he may not have such a deal. His kids may not be out of the woods yet.

September 14, 2007 - 9:56am | rfn

While you may be right

the idea is also scary.

One of the most effective tools of dictatorships worldwide is to remind people "under investigation" that failure to "cooperate" might cause their families to lose their homes or be imprisoned or somehow "put at risk".

To pledge NOT to prosecute real wrongdoing as a form of coercion is just as wrong as using threats of harm to the innocent.

Master one technique and you've mastered them both.

September 14, 2007 - 10:10am | leowassilie

everyone knows the Allens didn't get their money honestly.

you're right, but I believe it wouldn't matter in a dictatorship.

they would just do it, rather than threaten.

September 13, 2007 - 10:44pm | DEM53

head injury

I'm surprised that Allen hasn't used his traumatic head injury for his defense. Anybody with this kind of injury has impaired judgement. I don't think we are going to see Ben Stevens wanting to get dragged through something like this. I would bet he is going to have some good lawyers that keep him out of Jail. Hell I would just say that Bill Alllen is a crazy and dangerous man and that I was scared for myself and my family and I did what he wanted me to. Bill Allen is proving that daily while he is testifying.

September 13, 2007 - 8:49pm | truthseeker

It is classic mafia behavior............

and yet has some "honor" involved in protecting his family. They wouldn't have given those campaign contributions without bill telling them to. So he is taking responsibility for that which is probably correct.

The other classic mafia setup is that if you get busted, you never let it lead back to the true don, which in this case is the oil companies. The daily news says it was tied to possible future gasline work.

No........they have been serving the oil companies, with full knowledge they were doing it by bp, conoco and exxon, for years. The real ongoing payoff, and the daily news has never written this story for some reason, is that the money for all this corruption came from contracts given to VECO by the oil companies.

It started with them giving him contracts to break the unions on the north slope and then morphed into a political slushfund pipeline with their full knowledge. Ask anyone who works on the slope.

Why won't the daily news look into this obvious connection?

4 September 13, 2007 - 7:48pm | goshrx

Oh Please

let Fred Dyson be involved with all of this too. He can spend his time in prison thinking about how lame it would be for Eagle River to secede from the Municipality of Anchorage.

3 September 13, 2007 - 6:43pm | Natalie_0

APOC

Now thats a group that needs to be investigated! How could all this just slip by APOC? Why did it take the FBI to bring out the corruption? Am I missing something, or isn't the APOC suppose to be monitoring to prevent corruption? Or are there corrupt bastard club members in the APOC?

September 14, 2007 - 9:34am | leowassilie

yeah they do. not investigated, fired.

No, APOC knew.

Ray made sure of that.

It was more like...oh darn, it's Ray..AGAIN.

They had their chance.

Funding was part of it. Doing their job, was a pain.

Just look at what happened with Ben Stevens. What, he failed to disclose certain information?

Oh it's Ray, AGAIN. Ray was a big pain in their butt. He actually demanded accountability. Imagine if APOC EVER did. I guess minimum fines count.. as a slap on the ole wrist.

Funding is only part of the issue. The bigger issue is due dilligence. The whole division should be axed, especially the director. I remember seeing her on TV, and she would sit there and argue with Ray on every point he brought up. All while Ben sat there, with a big smirk on his face.

She saw Ray as a pain in the ass more than she did her job.

September 15, 2007 - 1:14pm | staufen

Things are changing

APOC's new board members and other changes are starting to occur. Check out Lesil McGuire hearing yesterday. Now APOC has gained a little respect for Ray's opinion. But Ray suggests that the State still needs a full time team of public integrity investigators. And with Legislators still claiming nothing they did in recent Ethics law changes would have prevented what has happened, one should shout "Why not!?" The Legislature needs to return to that drawing board too.

September 13, 2007 - 6:49pm | akallegro

APOC funding

was/is a big problem, and guess who decides how much they get to spend? The same folks that they are charged to keep an eye on.

What a system eh?

2 September 13, 2007 - 6:22pm | dirtytrixie

You Have To Love Old APOC Records

Who would have thought it back in 2000 that the APOC's financial disclosure records would be published online for the whole world to see ?

How is it that the checks were all cut to MB on the same day, but reported on three different dates to APOC.

Must be a computer glitch.

September 14, 2007 - 9:17am | TheSdog

What's that smell?

Is it noseknows?

September 14, 2007 - 9:55am | akgen

Or someones stealing

the nose nugget trademark... could this be juicy-ier than the no sex CBC fiasco? Hijacking that trademark?

September 15, 2007 - 7:16pm | dirtytrixie

Juicy, Juicy

It's well-known that the 604 videos from the Baranof Hotel are R-rated for profanity, alcohol consumption and political violence. Now there are rumors that there are X-rated recordings we haven't seen.

I just hear stuff.

September 15, 2007 - 9:51pm | akgen

lets do the math...

If there are 604 videos and say, each video contains at least 6 hours, I'd say the FBI has 3,624 hours of video. Could this mean there are 151 days or nights of recordings.

September 16, 2007 - 12:13pm | rfn

To ease the mind a bit....

Unless the gear the FBI used was primitive, there likely is much less video (fewer hours).

Simple technique to detect motion and only run recording equipment when there is someone present in the room. Actual, multiple ways to accomplish it, some of them dirt cheap.

September 13, 2007 - 10:16pm | tlamb775

Wasn't

Bobrick his Deputy Treasurer back then?

September 13, 2007 - 6:52pm | akallegro

Dont worry

Stags will be here any minute to explain why his hero the Mayor was getting his bread buttered on both sides. Should be fun to watch.

September 13, 2007 - 6:59pm | heyworth

legro

lol.

that is too funny!

you will be found to be profound.

in only 5 more minutes.

1 September 13, 2007 - 5:20pm | dirtytrixie

Sex

The only thing this trial is missing.

So far...

September 13, 2007 - 8:20pm | BSOM

Sex missing...but what about on a "social level"?

I sat in court today when Bill Allen was asked about his relationship with Pete (got) Kott's children, Peter and Pamela. He said Peter (Jr) had stayed the night at his house after getting too sauced to drive home. When asked about Pamela, Allen said "No"....the attorney pressed, "even on a social level?" WHAT??? as opposed to a "professional" level? That was just weird.

September 13, 2007 - 6:02pm | leowassilie

possibly..

One could insinuate from this famous quote:

"I own your ass."

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The last hour of testimony: Breakfast and blackmail