Perdigao's Puzzle – do the pieces fit?

As a “welcome back” to SLABBED reader and Saint’s Fan AKA you-can’t-trick-Rick, I’m tossing a few pieces of Perdigao’s Puzzle on the table at the Do Slab Inn and BYO Pub.

1st Piece: Unsealed – an I shaved my legs for this? moment

While some were in “jolly old…” cheering the Saints, the USA’s office was cleaning house – literally – searching for the office copy of Perdigao’s appearance bond – and no more successful that I’ve been at finding my other silver earring.  I’m still looking for my earring; but the USA filed a Motion to unseal and copy that Judge Fallon granted (surely with a smile) and today I noticed this entry on the docked.

11/02/2004 Minute Entry for proceedings held before Magistrate Judge Louis Moore, Jr: Bond Hearing as to James G Perdigao held on 11/2/2004. (Court Reporter Magistrate Clerical.) (Attachments: # 1 Appearance Bonds) (dno, ) (Entered: 10/24/2008)

There’s a pretty big gap between what non-lawyer me expected to see as “conditions” that he violated by allegedly hacking and swapping and the conditions stated in the appearance bond posted on the docket – hence my reference to an “I shaved my legs for this?” moment.

2nd Piece: The Do Shack Inn and Internet Cafe or a secret hideaway?


The officer in Pretrial Services assigned to Perdigao’s case testified that he only recently learned Perdigao was living with his girlfriend – the address where he allegedly used computers to hack into the A&R system.

Agent James Lamy of the federal Pretrial Services Office told Moore he discovered only recently that despite weekly communications with the defendant and monthly meetings, Perdigao hadn’t been truthful with him about his place of residence. Lamy found out only after Perdigao’s recent arrest that the defendant had been staying a good part of the time at his girlfriend’s home, he said.

Well, that left me scratching – not from poison ivy but from this statement in the charging document.

If this doesn’t evidence his living there was no secret, I suppose my next question would be if individuals released on bond are required to report the nights they get lucky?

3rd Piece: 2X as long as the gestation period of an elephant plus

Perdiago filed an Exparte Consent Motion to Continue the hearing scheduled to take place today –  adding to a four-year docket that began with a Complaint reportedly filed in October 2004 but listed only in reference.

10/15/2004 COMPLAINT against James Perdigao by Paul Quisenberry, Special Agent/FBI signed by Magistrate Judge Louis Moore Jr. (gw) [2:04-mj-00208] (Entered: 10/29/2004)

11/02/2004 Minute Entry for proceedings held before Magistrate Judge Louis Moore, Jr: Bond Hearing as to James G Perdigao held on 11/2/2004. (Court Reporter Magistrate Clerical.) (Attachments: # 1 Appearance Bonds) (dno, ) (Entered: 10/24/2008)

Only these three pieces of the Perdigao Puzzle – and the clue about another provided by Geaux Saints – have surfaced thus far today.  Do they change the picture in any way or are they just more of the background?

42 thoughts on “Perdigao's Puzzle – do the pieces fit?”

  1. Not to me for any particular reason. I was always waiting for the U.S. Attorneys to come forth with the determinative facts in this case. I still want to know who the money belonged to. The U.S. Attorneys have never clarified that.

  3. It looks like he was originally charged (2004) in magistrate court, and the case eventually given a new number and judge after the grand jury returned an indictment.

    It may be the same is going on with his bond revocation – he’s been charged in a magistrate court. This may be the way it works until it’s time to move forward with prosecution.

    The timing of the payoff of the girlfriend’s mortgage is intriguing. But, I still would like to know the amount of the mortgage.

    Regarding his residing at Cammie Street, he may face more charges in St. Tammany because he presented his Main Street address at booking. Misrepresentation.

  4. The Magistrate judges handle some matters over at the District Court. Essentially, the Magistrates handle a lot of routine or pretrial matters — discovery issues, etc. — so that the Judges can be freed to handle the more substantive matters or merts.

  6. Nowdy, great post. I’ve been trying to catch up on all things (work and slabbed) today. You really should start writing the screenplay for this. Maybe I can find out who geaux saints is.

  7. It’s a spectacular tangled web to us, the outsiders, right at Halloween.

    R.T./Sally – do you have any information that can paint us a picture of what Mr. Perdigao’s life may be like in the conditions at the federal prisoner side of this particular detention facility? Are they housed, fed, exercised, etc. separately from the state offenders?

  8. Regarding his residing at Cammie Street, he may face more charges in St. Tammany because he presented his Main Street address at booking. Misrepresentation.

    NAAS, not everyone lives where they spend the night. : )

  9. It may be a distinction without a difference, but they revoked his bond, in part, because he allegedly failed to inform them of the change in his place of residence.

    His driver license still says Main Street (possible violation); St. Tammany booking records list his residence as Main Street (possible violation); but, the Feds say his residence is Cammie Street. I guess it could be his “secondary” residence.

  10. Did he move out of the Main Street address? Sell or lease the building? Something I read today made me think that was an office location. Does that ring a bell with you? I’ll see if I can find what I was reading.

    I can’t see how it would be grounds to revoke his bond given the evidence of his girlfriend’s testimony but…

  14. Sorry, I hit the submit button.

    It’s coming. Eventually, they have to file more information and documents into the record if they expect to keep their trial date.

    I think part of that’s going to answe a lot of our questions, and some of it is going to be something we don’t expect.

  15. He may be pleading guilty on Friday. They say he accessed the computer system 400 times since 2004.

    He allegedly stole $30 million from A&R and it’s clients over 13 years. Now, he allegedly hacked the computer system 400 times since he left the firm?

    Somebody needs to tighten up over there.

  16. Well, that’s just flat incredible, NAAS, but it doesn’t address what else appears to have been going on over there that’s indicated in the documents.

  18. Allegedly, one of the 2 laptop computers he possessed had been stolen from another A&R attorney the day after last Christmas. Later, Perdigao issued a subpoena to A&R for files belonging to this same attorney.

    One of his own computers contained a reproduction of some handwritten notes from the A&R files that were created after he left the firm.

    The subpoena he issued to A&R in September listed documents that are allegedly also on his computer seized from Cammie Street.

    He may have outdone himself.

  20. If he had Scruggs for his lawyer, he would have been on Sixty Minutes with the documents.

  21. NAAS and Sally, be sure to check the information on document “conversion” in the post I just put up Acker’s Order begs for Appeal…

  22. Nowdy,

    If I read the correct text you reference, I think Perdigao still has a serious problem – he was not an A&R employee when he tapped into the computer.

  26. He’s represented by different counsel in the RICO suit.

    After the initial shock, flinging of objects, and cursing, they’ve got to be busy trying to find a way to wash him off and keep his as a victim of the alleged RICO acts, don’t you think?

    Some of the documents he “accessed” may prove that, but I don’t know if there is the same kind of qui tam exceptions cited by Judge Acker.

    If he is going to plead guilty tomorrow, there must be an understanding in place on punishment. It may be he has given up the RICO suit as part of that understanding.

    In which case, I don’t have a clue if those documents will ever see the light of day.

  27. Thanks Sally. An interesting question and one I don’t know the answer to is whether Letten must turn a blind eye or if evidence of other crimes is contained in the hacking evidence against Perdigao is it still considered tainted?

    Big time busy newsday. Whew.

    sop

  28. Law enforcement could use the documents. They didn’t get those documents by violating anybody’s rights.

    As far as I can understand it, Adams and Reese invited law enforcement to investigate the hacking.

    I would have thought that Perdigao had all the documents he needed before he left the firm.

    Perdigao should have worked for the government as a spy. Then, he would have been legitimate when his adrenalin rushed.

  29. Isn’t that what he tried to do Sally? He kept bringing them evidence thinking a deal had been worked out and then they hit him with 59 count indictment/1000 year possible sentence which is no “plea bargin” any way you look at it.

    If A&R/USA are just now discovering he was getting evidence that far back by going into the system, an independent investigation need to take a look at that. There is no Santa Clause that puts evidence in stockings.

  31. It seems apparent he gave his RICO attorneys a copy of the Sholes documents, which may have been obtained through his “hacking”. What else did he give them? Or, did he draft the 73-page RICO suit while sitting at his table, surrounded by stacks of evidence?

  32. The Sholes documents would have been hard copies because of the various documents attached that did not originate from Adams and Reese. And the Sholes documents were only a handful — from a period of time. Those were hard copy documents.

  33. Well, as Justice Kitty Kimball recently said, more lawyers need to report unethical conduct to the Bar, the court and the authorities. The Sholes documents are out there in the public domain. It’s a place to start. An ethical lawyer needs to step up.

  34. Let me add that even anonymous reports are required to be investigated by the disciplinary authorities. It’s better if they have a witness they can work with – say a former employee?

  35. Sally, it really doesn’t make sense the information would be on a computer or that the computer wouldn’t be in bank vault or some secure location.

    There’s always been more about this case that doesn’t make sense than does; so, that’s nothing new but it is another piece of the puzzle that doesn’t seem to fit anywhere.

    However, Wessel has said before that Perdigao can document his claims and, given his reputation, I don’t think he’d say that if he hadn’t seen a copy – so something else to consider is just how much hard evidence Perdigao could have by now – and is there even more that wasn’t on computer.

  37. The computer files made it easy for him to work on the numerous pleadings they also found on the computers. Also, the one computer beloning to the other A&R attorney already had data and documents on it.

    Sally and Nowdy, you’re probably both correct. There are copies somewhere.

    Let’s start with the source of the handwritten documents that were obviously scanned and uploaded onto the computer. If I read the pleadings right, those are still missing.

    There may be a separate investigation taking place on that. It’s indicated in the extremely detailed and convincing (may be “convicting”) Second Superceding Indictment that someone at A&R noticed the handwritten material missing from attorney files. They were written and placed into the files after February 1, 2007 (3 years after he was banned from the building), and they were notes about the Perdigao matter.

    I know it’s alleged they didn’t detect him “stealing” money for almost 13 years, and I know it’s alleged he invaded their computer system over 400 times since 2004, but I don’t think they would have failed to recognize him rifling through attorney files even though they hadn’t seen him in over 3 years.

    There is a witness to this.

    Then, there is his girlfriend. If she could remember a fraction of what he told her………….

  39. That’s pretty much what Count 60, paragraph 10 of the new indictment says – “an individual stole handwritten notes regarding the PERDIGAO matter from at least two attorney’s files at Adams and Reese…”

  41. I bet you’re right, Sally – on both counts. That’s why I think there’s at least another person helping him.

    Since it is getting stranger, we better not rule out the possibility he got a job with the service that picks up the place at night.

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