Gay star witness in Martha Stewart trial didn't testify
The gay man dubbed the government's "star witness" in the case against home arts guru Martha Stewart was prevented from taking the stand after defense lawyers charged that key information was withheld from them. Douglas Faneuil, 28, the former Merrill Lynch & Co. brokerage assistant who sold Stewart's 3,928 shares of ImClone stock on Dec. 27, 2001, after first alerting her that ImClone's founder was dumping his shares, got the ImClone tip from his boss, former stockbroker Peter Bacanovic, who is also on trial with Stewart, charged with conspiracy, obstruction of justice and securities fraud. Defense lawyers discovered Faneuil's former lawyer told the FBI in 2002 that he couldn't recall if Faneuil was tipped off by Bacanovic or by Sam Waksal, founder of ImClone Systems and a friend of Stewart's. The discrepancy in files prosecutors turned over resulted in the judge's agreement with the complaint.
gay.com
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