Columnist Jeff German: FBI agents may find more gems

Friday, Feb. 6, 2004 | 11:25 a.m.

FBI agents are pursuing new leads in their political corruption investigation involving former strip club owner Michael Galardi, who is now cooperating with agents.

So the government's notorious witness must be earning his keep.

County Commissioner Mary Kincaid-Chauncey and former Commissioners Dario Herrera and Lance Malone have been charged in the probe, and former County Commissioner Erin Kenny has pleaded guilty.

But other familiar names, I'm told, are surfacing again in the investigation along with new ones, which is creating a buzz at City Hall and the county courthouse.

I've learned that FBI agents quietly served a subpoena in December at the main office of The Jewelers, 2400 Western Ave., as part of an effort to track down possible gifts Galardi may have given to public officials not yet charged in the investigation and to one official who has been charged. The Jewelers is only two blocks away from Cheetahs, the popular topless club Galardi owned until he pleaded guilty to corruption charges last year.

Mordecai Yerushalmi, the high-profile owner of The Jewelers, which caters to celebrities and movers and shakers, confirmed that agents served the subpoena, but he declined to discuss what they requested.

Agents, I'm told, were looking for transactions involving Galardi, Malone and four others -- City Councilman Michael Mack, former City Councilman Michael McDonald and his top aide Rick Henry, and Chief Deputy District Attorney Gary Guymon. The names of all six people appeared in the subpoena.

Where this will lead is anyone's guess. Galardi's credibility has been questioned, so FBI agents will have to work hard to corroborate whatever information he's supplying.

Mack's name first surfaced in the investigation in May during an FBI raid on Cheetahs. A videotape of the councilman receiving a lap dance was among the items FBI agents seized during the search of the strip club.

In October Mack and other politicians, including those later indicted in the corruption probe, were named in an FBI Patriot Act request seeking information from local financial institutions.

Mack said he hasn't purchased any personal items from Yerushalmi, but he has done wholesale business with him as an independent jeweler.

As for the subpoena served at The Jewelers, Mack said: "I'm not concerned about that. I've never received any gifts from Galardi."

Still, it's obvious that FBI agents haven't lost interest in Mack -- nor McDonald, who once had a consulting contract with Galardi.

McDonald, also a subject of last year's Patriot Act request, was named in the search warrant used in the Cheetahs raid, but unlike his county colleagues he was never indicted.

"Who knows what rumors are out there," McDonald said. "They're probably just doing a thorough investigation."

McDonald acknowledged buying jewelry from Yerushalmi, saying, "All my transactions have been legal."

Henry's name hasn't surfaced in the probe until now, and he could not be reached for comment. But he reportedly also did business at The Jewelers.

The most intriguing new name tied to the corruption case, however, is Guymon, a veteran prosecutor who has obtained murder convictions over the years against the likes of Margaret Rudin and ex-cop Ron Mortenson.

I'm told that Guymon also has been picked up on FBI wiretaps in the Galardi investigation.

Guymon said that, even though he knows he has done nothing wrong, he wouldn't be surprised if FBI agents overheard him talking with both Galardi and Malone, who lobbied for Galardi.

"I've been friends with Mike and Lance for many years," Guymon said, adding that he has not had any contact with them since the FBI investigation became public in May.

Guymon said he recalled buying a necklace and a pair of earrings for his wife and some jewelry for himself at The Jewelers.

Such transactions sound pretty innocent -- unless Galardi has told the FBI a tale of more sinister dealings.