Fake ACORN Pimp Arrested in Attempt to Bug Senate Office
[20Acornside01]
Filmmaker James O'Keefe dressed as a pimp before entering ACORN
offices last year. O'Keefe was arrested Monday after attempting to
wiretap U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu's office phones in New Orleans.
Alleging a plot to tamper with phones in Democratic Sen. Mary
Landrieu's office in the Hale Boggs Federal Building in downtown New
Orleans, the FBI arrested four people Monday, including James O'Keefe,
25, a conservative filmmaker whose undercover videos at ACORN field
offices severely damaged the advocacy group's credibility.
Also arrested were Joseph Basel, Stan Dai and Robert Flanagan, all 24.
Flanagan is the son of William Flanagan, who is the acting U.S. Attorney
for the Western District of Louisiana, the office confirmed.
All four were charged with entering federal property under false
pretenses with the intent of committing a felony.
According to the FBI affidavit, Flanagan and Basel entered the federal
building at 500 Poydras Street about 11 a.m. Monday, dressed as
telephone company employees, wearing jeans, fluorescent green vests,
tool belts, and hard hats. When they arrived at Landrieu's 10th floor
office, O'Keefe was already in the office and had told a staffer he was
waiting for someone to arrive.
When Flanagan and Basel entered the office, they told the staffer they
were there to fix phone problems. At that time, the staffer, referred to
only as Witness 1 in the affadavit, observed O'Keefe positioning his
cell phone in his hand to videotape the operation. O'Keefe later
admitted to agents that he recorded the event.
After being asked, the staffer gave Basel access to the main phone at
the reception desk. The staffer told investigators that Basel
manipulated the handset. He also tried to call the main office phone
using his cell phone, and said the main line wasn't working. Flanagan
did the same.
They then told the staffer they needed to perform repair work on the
main phone system and asked where the telephone closet was located. The
staffer showed the men to the main General Services Administration
office on the 10th floor, and Flanagan and Basel went in. There, a GSA
employee asked for the men's credentials, after which they stated they
left them in their vehicle.
The U.S. Marshal's Service apprehended all four men shortly thereafter.
http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2010/01/acorn_gotcha_man_arrested\
_for.html
