Petters trial: Tears as assistant recalls going to feds
November 03, 2009 20:17 PM
They were colleagues, friends and even had an intimate relationship, but during her testimony in federal court Tuesday Deanna Coleman painted a very different picture of her relationship with Tom Petters saying essentially that he told her what to do and she complied.
Coleman is the star witness for the prosecution. She was once vice president of Tom Petters' company and has pleaded guilty for her part in an alleged scam that bilked investors out of $3.5 billion. In exchange for her cooperation, prosecutors will ask a judge for leniency in her sentencing.
Petters is on trial for several charges including fraud and money laundering.
From the witness stand Tuesday, Coleman testified that millions and millions of dollars were coming into Petters Company Inc. and millions were going out, in the form of employee bonuses and gifts.
Prosecutors showed the jury copies of dozens of checks, most signed by Tom Petters himself and worth anywhere from $1,500 to $2.5 million. It's an example of excess, prosecutors tried to show, that was paid for on the backs on investors who thought their money was being used for something else.
When asked by prosecutors where the bonus money came from, Coleman answered any money Petters had came from investors.
And Coleman herself received millions in bonuses for her role in falsifying purchase orders for electronics that lured the investors. Coleman spent the money on homes and vacations.
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