In July or August of 2006, Andre Czaplinski visited James Botti at his office.
Their conversation escalated to an argument. As Czaplinski left, he threatened to tell federal agents about an alleged $50,000 bribe Botti gave to Mayor Mark A. Lauretti.
That was the testimony Tuesday from Botti’s friend, Neil Heslin, who said he overheard the fight between Botti and Czaplinski that day.
Heslin’s statements — on the last day of testimony in Botti’s federal corruption trial — contradict earlier testimony from Czaplinski, who said he never threatened to tell agents about the alleged bribe.
On cross examination Tuesday, Assistant U.S. Attorney Rahul Kale tried to discredit Heslin and his testimony.
The Fight
Heslin testified that the fight took place over the sale of Botti’s property at 350 Bridgeport Ave.
Czaplinski was interested in purchasing the property, but Botti sold it to someone else.
U.S. prosecutors have alluded to that sale as the source of the cash other witnesses have testified Botti kept in his office safe.
In his testimony last week, Czaplinski said that purchasing the property was only a dream. He didn’t lose any money or invested time when it was sold to someone else, he testified.
“I lost a dream,” Czaplinski said.
But Heslin said he overheard Czaplinski tell Botti he would “do whatever he had to do” to get back at Botti, and said he would “lie to” the feds and tell them about the alleged bribe.
“Did Jimmy respond?” Botti’s attorney, William Dow III, asked Heslin.
“He (Botti) said there was no reason he would pay off anybody and he wouldn’t do anything like that because it’s illegal,” Heslin said.
Really?
Kale questioned the accuracy of Heslin’s testimony for a handful of reasons.
For example, Heslin only first told anyone about overhearing the fight in February 2010, almost four years after it happened.
And when a federal agent interviewed him about the incident last month, Heslin didn’t say Czaplinski indicated he would lie, only that he would tell the feds about the alleged bribe, Kale said.
“Now you’ve added some things to this conversation,” Kale said.
Also, Kale brought up Heslin’s 2001 DUI arrest to point out that he might not have had a driver’s license during the time period mentioned because his Connecticut license was suspended after the arrest.
Heslin earlier said he drove to Botti’s office that day.
Heslin received a New York license after his arrest, so Kale questioned if he even lived in Connecticut during the time of the alleged conversation.
Kale indirectly suggested Heslin was testifying to help his friend.
“You didn’t like being in jail,” Kale said. “You wouldn’t want one of your friends to go to jail, would you?”
Last Witness
Dow called Shelton Public Works Director Paul DiMauro as his last witness.
DiMauro worked for the company that owned the office complex behind 828 Bridgeport Ave. when Botti proposed a development on the site.
The company appealed the June 20, 2006 planning and zoning approval of the project, but eventually settled with Botti out of court.
DiMauro said he is very close to Lauretti. At one point asked Lauretti if he was involved with Botti.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard Schechter read from DiMauro’s grand jury testimony on the subject:
“I did talk to Mark,” DiMauro told the grand jury. “And said ‘Are you partners in any shape or form with Jim Botti?’ And he said ‘No.’”
DiMauro asked Lauretti if he had “any dealings with Jim Botti,” according to the grand jury testimony read in court.
“And the mayor said no,” DiMauro told the grand jury. “Emphatically said no.”
Coffee or Tea
Dow’s last question in Botti’s defense was a little off topic.
He asked DiMauro — who celebrates Christmas with the Lauretti family — how the mayor takes his coffee.
“He doesn’t drink coffee,” DiMauro replied. “He drinks O.J. and tea.”
The questions plays off earlier testimony from Czaplinski about a meeting with Botti and Lauretti in Botti’s maintenance garage.
Czaplinski testified that Botti asked him to bring three cups of coffee to the garage.
When he arrived with the coffees, Czaplinski said he saw Lauretti working on one of his cars, which was stored there for a while.
Dow asked Czaplinski the same question about how the mayor takes his coffee.
Czaplinski wasn’t sure, guessing maybe it was an iced coffee.
Closing Arguments
Wednesday morning, each side will give closing arguments in the case, trying to drive home points they brought up during testimony over the past two and a half weeks.
Dow’s arguments have been that Shelton is a town with old-time values, where people help each other out.
The U.S. attorneys argued that Botti bribed Lauretti and then they worked outside of the public eye to get his development approved.
The jury will begin deliberations on Thursday.
