The case against Conrad Black has been laid bare in Chicago court documents as prosecutors prepare for his trial in March on charges of looting Hollinger International Inc. They describe in an 81-page document how they intend to back up their allegations that he and others used sham transactions to improperly pocket tens of millions of dollars that rightfully belonged to the company.
The filing, known as a Santiago proffer, serves as a kind of road map to the prosecutors' case and summarises the evidence they will put forward to support their charges. It also offers some additional details about how the alleged scheme worked and the behind-the-scenes scramble that took place in the executive suite once shareholders and auditors began to ask uncomfortable questions.
Essentially, though, it is little different from what we know. The plan made use of what's known as a "non compete" agreements. In one large sale, Black and his close associates diverted "close to $52m" (£26.4m) to themselves or Black's private company.
In addition, the filing says, Black defrauded Hollinger by billing the company for personal expenses, including most of the cost of a lavish $54,000 (£27,500) birthday party for Black's wife, Barbara Amiel, at the Manhattan restaurant La Grenouille. He's also accused of using the company jet so that the couple could to Bora Bora in the South Pacific, on to Seattle for a Wagner opera, then back to Toronto at a cost of more than $492,000 (£250,000).
Black's longtime partner, former Hollinger chief operating officer, David Radler, was also indicted last year in connection with the scandal. But he has pleaded guilty under a plea-bargain arrangement in which he agreed to cooperate with prosecutors.
