Attorney advised against digging up silver

By Jeff German (contact)

Tuesday, April 25, 2000 | 11:11 a.m.

Ted Binion's divorce attorney testified today that he told the wealthy gambling figure it was a bad idea to have someone excavate his buried silver fortune in Pahrump in the event of his death.

"I told him that it was the stupidest thing I've ever heard," Tom Standish said.

Standish, testifying in the fourth week of the Binion murder trial, said he told Binion in the presence of Rick Tabish, one of Binion's accused killers, that the safest place for the silver in case of his death was in its underground vault.

Tabish, a 35-year-old Montana contractor, and Binion's girlfriend, Sandy Murphy, are standing trial in the courtroom of District Judge Joseph Bonaventure on charges of killing Binion on Sept. 17, 1998, and stealing his valuables.

Standish said he advised Binion and Tabish during a June 1998 lunch at the Horseshoe Club that it would be unlawful for anyone -- except for the executor of Binion's estate -- to remove the silver.

He testified that when Binion again raised the subject in Murphy's presence after the silver had been buried in July, he repeated his advice that it was a silly idea. Binion, he said, agreed with him.

Tabish has contended he dug up the silver at Binion's request less than 36 hours after his death to protect it for Binion's 19-year-old daughter, Bonnie.

On Monday, current and former Nye County sheriff's deputies took the witness stand to describe the events leading to the Sept. 19, 1998, arrests of Tabish and two other men for trying to steal the $6 million in silver bars and coins in downtown Pahrump.

The silver was stored in an underground vault that Tabish had buried for Binion on land Binion owned.

Sgt. Ed Howard, former Sgt. Steve Huggins and ex-deputy Dean Pennock all testified that Tabish lied to them on several occasions before they took him, employee Michael Milot and Binion ranch hand David Mattsen into custody about 5 a.m. on charges of stealing the 48,000 pounds of silver.

At first, the Nye County deputies testified, Tabish told them he was removing concrete with the heavy equipment to clear Binion's property for a possible real estate sale.

When deputies asked what was inside a large belly dump, Tabish said it was empty, the deputies testified. But Pennock climbed on top of the tractor-trailer and found what he said was a "s... load of silver" inside.

After he was caught with the silver, Tabish said, "OK, I lied," Howard testified.

Tabish, Howard said, then told him he was asked by Binion to remove the silver in the event of his death, convert it to cash and put it in a trust for his daughter.

Previously, Binion's estate lawyers, Richard Wright and James J. Brown, testified that Tabish never informed them after Binion's death that he planned to dig up the silver.

Tabish told the deputies he received permission from Nye County Sheriff Wade Lieseke to take the silver. He said Lieseke was to receive $100,000 for his help, Huggins testified.

Huggins quoted Tabish at the scene as saying, "Wade, I told you I couldn't pay you until I got the silver out of the ground."

All three deputies, who were supporting Lieseke's political opponent in 1998, said Lieseke appeared apprehensive and upset at the scene.

Lieseke, who is not expected to be called as a prosecution witness, has previously acknowledged receiving phone calls from Tabish before the silver was excavated. But he has denied giving Tabish the go-ahead to dig it up.

Huggins testified that Binion told him shortly before his death to keep an eye on the vault because he was concerned that someone, including those who had buried the vault for him, might try to steal the silver.

Tabish told Huggins at the scene that he was instructed to leave one silver dollar in the middle of the vault after he had dug up the fortune to send a message to the Binion family. Deputies found the silver dollar when they examined the vault after Tabish's arrest.

There has been previous testimony that the safe in Binion's home was cleaned out of everything but one dime after his death.

Huggins corroborated Howard's testimony about a key statement Tabish allegedly made before his arrest putting him at the scene of Binion's death. Both sergeants testified that Tabish told them he was at Binion's Las Vegas home on Sept. 17, 1998.

Tabish, they said, quoted Binion as saying he was going to take a bottle of Xanax and go to sleep and when he woke up, his body would be cleansed of drugs.

Tabish's attorney, Louis Palazzo, disputed that claim, saying Tabish told Lieseke and the deputies in a taped interview following his arrest that he was at Binion's home the day before his death.

Prosecutors aren't introducing the tape as evidence at the trial because deputies failed to inform Tabish that he had a constitutional right not to talk to them.

However, Bonaventure today allowed one excerpt to be presented to the 12-member jury. In that excerpt, Tabish does say the last time he saw Binion was the day before he died. But he also says Binion was happy that day, in stark contrast to the defense's claim that he was suicidal.

Howard testified that deputies found $1,600 in fresh $100 bills in the possession of both Tabish and Milot after they were arrested. Prosecutors believe the bills, mostly in sequential order, were stolen from Binion, who had obtained them from the bank two days before his death.

During a break, defense attorneys sought to prevent the testimony of bail bondsman Dario Costantino, who helped Murphy spring Tabish and Milot from jail a day after their Pahrump arrests.

But Bonaventure refused to bar him from the witness stand.

Chief Deputy District Attorney David Roger told the judge that Murphy's role in the release of Tabish and Milot was further evidence of the murder-theft conspiracy against Binion.

He said Murphy, who was supposed to be "grieving" at the time, was bailing out the very people arrested for stealing her boyfriend's property.

Costantino later testified that Murphy, assisted by her civil attorney, William Knudson, put up her 1998 Mercedes sports coupe, some jewelry and California land in her name as collateral for the two $100,000 bonds that had been set for Tabish and Milot.

Prosecutors expect to wrap up their case by the end of the week. Several key witnesses have yet to take the stand, including Murphy friend Tanya Cropp and two Montana men close to Tabish -- Dennis Rehbein and Jason Frazer.

Bob Leonard, a partner of Tom Dillard, a Binion estate private detective, was to testify today about his analysis of numerous phone calls made between Murphy, Tabish and other alleged co-conspirators in the months before Binion's death.

Dillard, credited with breaking open the murder case, is not on the final list of prosecution witnesses.

Jeff German is the Sun's senior investigative reporter. He can be reached at (702)259-4067 or by e-mail at german@lasvegassun.com