Lawyer Reportedly Went Undercover in Drug Sting, Snagging Ex-Clients
An Ohio lawyer who once represented drug defendants has reportedly turned the tables, going undercover to help authorities arrest 30 people, including his former clients, a newspaper report says.
Frank Pignatelli was facing a possible indictment as a co-conspirator when he agreed to work with authorities in the drug sting, according to a story in the Akron Beacon Journal. Now he’s representing drug defendants and other accused criminals in Denver.
The newspaper’s examination of court records revealed that Pignatelli began cooperating three years ago when his legal troubles began to mount. Prosecutors claimed they had learned in a different investigation that Pignatelli was helping his clients buy “stash houses” to store drugs and money, the story says. Authorities told the newspaper that they found large sums of money in a raid on Pignatelli’s home.
One of Pignatelli’s former clients, Chevaliee ”Chevy” Robinson, was sentenced to 15 years in prison on Friday after pleading guilty to drug conspiracy and money laundering, the story says. Robinson’s lawyer, James Campbell, told the Beacon Journal that Pignatelli’s decision to work against former clients ”still leaves a bad taste in my mouth.”
Pignatelli’s lawyer, Lawrence Vuillemin, said his client has ”acted responsibly and as required under the law.”
The Wall Street Journal Law Blog says the story has raised hackles among some legal bloggers. But Mark Bennett of the Defending People blog says it is possible that Pignatelli’s clients were using him to commit crimes. “In that case, what they told him was not privileged, and it’s hard to sympathize with either him or them,” he writes.
