Former FBI Special Agent Pleads Not Guilty To Perjury, Obstruction Charges
BOSTON (CBS/AP) -- Bob Fitzpatrick, a key witness and former FBI special agent in the Whitey Bulger case, pleaded not guilty Thursday to charges that he lied during the trial.
The former assistant special agent in charge surrendered to United States marshals Thursday morning, court documents show.
Read: Full Bob Fitzpatrick Indictment (.pdf)
Prosecutors say that in court proceedings dating back to 1998, Fitzpatrick has falsely depicted himself as a whistleblower who attempted to end the notorious gangster's relationship with the FBI.
"During the course of that testimony, Fitzpatrick made false material declarations designed to aid Bulger's defense," the indictment stated. "Fitzpatrick also made false material declarations to enhance his own credibility as a former FBI official by making false claims about his professional accomplishments as an FBI agent."
Fitzpatrick, 75, faces six counts of perjury and six counts of obstruction of justice related to his testimony in the Bulger trial. In 2013, Bulger was convicted for his role in 11 murders and extortion in the 1970s and 80s.
Fitzpatrick says he has read his 12-count indictment. The government says the perjury charges carry a penalty of up to five years in prison, and obstruction charges carry a sentence of up to 10 years, according to WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Lana Jones.
On Thursday, he pleaded not guilty.
Prosecutors are seeking not seeking bail, but they are requesting a $50,000 unsecured bond and that Fitzpatrick surrender his passport and firearms. Fitzpatrick's lawyers agreed to the conditions.
Fitzpatrick will turn over his three guns and expired license to carry, according to WBZ-TV's Jim Armstrong.
During Bulger's 2013 trial, Fitzpatrick testified he tried to convince the FBI to terminate Bulger as an informant, because Bulger didn't appear to be helping the FBI's mission to gather information on the Mafia. Fitzpatrick said his bosses didn't agree with him.
WBZ Legal Analyst Harry Manion says that Fitzpatrick's testimony was designed to assist the defense, and the new charges do not put the Bulger verdict in jeopardy.
"This has absolutely no impact whatsoever on the verdict or the appeal," Manion said. "It's really puzzling why this was even brought."
Prosecutors suggested he exaggerated his claim to sell copies of a book he wrote about Bulger.
Fitzpatrick told jurors that in 1981, about six years after Bulger began working an informant, he was given the task of assessing the mobster to see if he was providing the FBI with useful information.
Fitzpatrick insisted that he tried repeatedly to persuade the FBI to end its relationship with Bulger, particularly after Bulger was considered a suspect in two 1982 killings.
During the trial, however, prosecutors suggested that Fitzpatrick exaggerated his claim.
"Weren't you more concerned with your own career rather than rocking the boat?" Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Kelly asked Fitzpatrick on the stand.
Fitzpatrick, of Charlestown, Rhode Island, worked for the FBI from 1965 to 1986. In 1980, he was assigned as an assistant special agent-in-charge of the FBI's Boston division. In that position, he supervised the division's organized crime squad.
Prosecutors say Bulger was an informant for the squad from approximately 1975 through 1990.
The indictment says that in May 1986, Fitzpatrick was demoted and reassigned to the Providence, Rhode Island, field office. He left the FBI shortly after that, in December 1986.
His next court appearance is scheduled for June 10.
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