Offer of big bonus cited in bribery trial

Eric Tucker

Monday, July 25, 2005 | 9:31 a.m.

WORCESTER, Mass. -- Lincoln Park's former general manager said he wanted to "take care" of the greyhound track's lawyer by giving him a $1 million performance bonus for his work in the "political arena," according to testimony Friday at the racetrack's bribery conspiracy trial.

Prosecutors say the payment would have amounted to a bribe, since the lawyer's partner, John Harwood, was speaker of the Rhode Island House of Representatives at the time.

David Brents, former chief financial officer of the track's parent company, Wembley USA, testified on day four of the trial in U.S. District Court, Worcester.

He said General Manager Daniel Bucci proposed the payment during an August 2000 meeting at which executives from Lincoln Park and Wembley discussed lobbying and political expenses.

"He expressed the need to take care of (Harwood's partner) Mr. (Dan) McKinnon," Brents said. "Mr. Bucci articulated the need to pay McKinnon because of the work that he had done in the political arena for the park."

Minutes from the meeting, which were shown to jurors, say, "Dan discussed the need to pay a performance bonus to McKinnon + Harwood of $1.0 million. No decision was reached in this matter."

Prosecutors say the proposed $1 million payment was part of a plan by Bucci and Nigel Potter, former chief executive of London-based Wembley PLC, to pay the law firm of McKinnon & Harwood up to $4 million over the course of several years.

Bucci, Potter and the track itself are being tried for a second time for bribery conspiracy and related charges. The first trial, held in Providence, R.I., ended in February with the jury failing to reach a verdict on the most serious charges. The retrial was moved to Worcester because of intense publicity.

Prosecutors say they hoped to curry favor with lawmakers for their plan to add more video lottery terminals at the track in Lincoln, R.I., and foster opposition to a rival casino proposed by the Narragansett Indian Tribe.

Lawyers for Bucci, Potter and Lincoln Park have said the money was merely intended as a performance bonus.

McKinnon rejected the proposed payment, and he and Harwood were never charged.

Brents said he and Francis "Skip" Sherman -- a former president of Wembley USA, a subsidiary of Wembley PLC -- objected to the proposed payment.

Brents said Potter suggested that McKinnon could be compensated by increasing the rate of pay on his invoices to the park.

Earlier Friday, Sherman said he strongly disagreed with the proposed payments and voiced his objections to Bucci over several months.

Sherman said he never authorized a vote on the money.

Sherman testified earlier that he didn't know what the gambling center would get in exchange for the proposed payments.

"I thought carrying out this act was illegal," he said.