Edwards trial: Paying in cash, ripping up the invoice

Natalie Gott

Tuesday, Feb. 29, 2000 | 12:25 p.m.

BATON ROUGE, La. - The parade of witnesses testifying that former Gov. Edwin Edwards and his son Stephen paid for big-ticket items with tens of thousands of dollars in cash resumed today in the Edwards' federal racketeering trial.

A witnesses said Edwin Edwards paid $30,000 cash plus a trade-in for a new private airplane during his last term. Another said Stephen Edwards made a final $28,000 cash payment for plumbing, air conditioning and heating work at his private home. And the defense agreed to allow evidence that Edwards paid $200,000 in cash in 1992 when he closed on the 600 acres of Mississippi land which later became his Double E ranch.

The testimony and evidence was further indication that Edwin and Stephen Edwards had large amounts of cash on hand during the mid-1990s, when they allegedly were receiving large cash payoffs from casinos. It also appeared to be preparation for financial testimony from investigators who will try to say the men spent more money than they reported as legitimate income.

On Monday, more than a half-dozen witnesses talked about Edwin Edwards paying cash for cars, jewelry, vacation resorts home furnishings and gifts. He usually used crisp $100 bills banded together.

Edwards' family members are among those being called. His mother-in-law was on tap to be called as a witness today. On Monday, prosecutors called his daughter Anna as they tried to prove their case.

However, Anna, under friendly cross examination from her father's lawyer, testified that her father became fond of cash through her grandfather, who raised his sons to be wary of banks after seeing people lose their savings during the Great Depression in the 1930s.

In most instances, the witnesses said there was no attempt to hide the cash payments.

However a wallboard finisher testified that Edwards' son and co-defendant Stephen became agitated when told that a cash payment would be recorded in the man's business accounts. Stephen Edwards eventually paid the bill with a check from his law firm.

And a worker who cleared land for Edwards' daughter Anna said he was told to step inside for a cash payment - even though he was covered with dirt and mud.

When Grady Stockstill walked inside Anna Edwards' house, he found her counting cash with Edwards and a blonde woman. Stockstill said he was paid $8,000, mostly in $100 bills.

Edwin and Stephen Edwards and five other men are on trial for charges that they participated in a series of schemes to manipulate and profit from the awarding of riverboat casino licenses before and after Edwards left office in January 1996.

Prosecutors are trying to show that large sums of cash changed hands at a time when bribery, extortion and money laundering schemes were allegedly being conducted by the defendants. There was no indication that the cash payments described in Monday's testimony were illegal.

Landscaper Eduardo Jenkins said he did $152,702 worth of work, including the installation of a swimming pool, for Edwin Edwards' home in 1995.

About $80,000 of the money was paid in banded bundles of $100 bills. The payments included a $50,000 down payment Jenkins said he picked up at the Governor's Mansion.

David Kleinpeter said he was working on Edwin Edwards' Baton Rouge house in 1995, the last full year of Edwards' last term in office. On his first payday, Edwards paid for a job of about $800 with cash - in $100 bills.

Kleinpeter said Edwards looked at the invoice for the job, then ripped it up, saying he didn't need to keep it.

Kleinpeter said he frequently saw Edwards pay other people in cash for their work.

"I did witness money changing hands, whether it was $100 or $1,000 I don't remember."

Under cross examination, Kleinpeter said it didn't appear that Edwards was trying to hide his method of payment.

Another witness, Mohammad Kahn, who owns a siding company, said Edwards paid him $40,000 in cash for a job he did.

"He mentioned it was his gambling money," said Kahn, who identified himself as a good friend of Edwards'.

"He said if you are ever short of money, I usually keep cash at home," Kahn said. "He said you can borrow it from me."