Most Scandalous Trials of the Century   - The Who's Who Worldwide Registry Tragedy

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8003
1 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK
2 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - X
3 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, : CR 96 1016(S-1)
4 v. : U.S. Courthouse
5 Uniondale, New York BRUCE W. GORDON, WHO'S WHO
6 WORLD WIDE REGISTRY, INC., :
STERLING WHO'S WHO, INC.,
7 TARA GARBOSKI, ORAL FRANK OSMAN, LAURA WEITZ, ANNETTE
8 HALEY, SCOTT MICHAELSON, : and MARTIN
9 REFFSIN, :
TRANSCRIPT OF TRIAL
10 Defendants. :March 17, 1998
11 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - X 9:30 o'clock a.m.

12

13 BEFORE:

14 HONORABLE ARTHUR D. SPATT, U.S.D.J.

15

16 APPEARANCES:
17 For the Government: ZACHARY W. CARTER United States Attorney

18 One Pierrepont Plaza Brooklyn, New York 11201
19 By: RONALD G. WHITE
CECIL SCOTT
20 Assistant U.S. Attorneys

21 For the Defendants: NORMAN TRABULUS, ESQ.
22 For Bruce W. Gordon
170 Old Country Road, Suite 600
23 Mineola, New York 11501
24 EDWARD P. JENKS, ESQ.
For Who's Who, Sterling
25 332 Willis Avenue
Mineola, New York 11501


OWEN M. WICKER, RPR OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER
8004

1
GARY SCHOER, ESQ.
2 For Tara Garboski
6800 Jericho Turnpike
3 Syosset, New York 11791

4 ALAN M. NELSON, ESQ.
For Oral Frank Osman
5 3000 Marcus Avenue
Lake Success, New York 11042
6
WINSTON LEE, ESQ.
7 For Laura Weitz
319 Broadway
8 New York, New York 10007

9 MARTIN GEDULDIG, ESQ.
For Annette Haley
10 400 South Oyster Bay Road
Hicksville, New York 11801
11
JAMES C. NEVILLE, ESQ.
12 For Scott Michaelson
225 Broadway
13 New York, New York 10007

14 THOMAS F.X. DUNN,
For MrShortcut,
15 150 Nassau Street
New York, New York 10038
16
JOHN S. WALLENSTEIN, ESQ.
17 For Mart in Reffsin 215 Hilton Avenue
18 Hempstead, New York 11551

19
Court Reporter: Owen M. Wicker, RPR
20 United States District Court
Two Uniondale Avenue
21 Uniondale, New York 11553
(516) 292-6963
22

23 Proceedings recorded by mechanical stenography, transcript
produced by computer-assisted transcription.
24
25 (Case called.)

OWEN M. WICKER, RPR OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER
8005

1 THE COURT: Where is Mr. Lee? Will somebody get

2 him, please?

3 Mr. Trabulus, you want to see me.

4 MR. TRABULUS: Your Honor, all I want to do is

5 I'm handing up defendant Gordon's request to charge. I've

6 given a copy to all counsel.

7 THE COURT: Hand it up.

8 MR. SCHOER: Judge, I will have a request to

9 charge. I have an original and courtesy copy to the

10 Court.

11 MR. TRABULUS: And does Your Honor want a

12 courtesy copy?

13 THE COURT: Sure.

14 MR. TRABULUS: I'll get one for you.

15 THE COURT: Hand it up.

16 Thank you.

17 Are we ready to proceed?

18 Let's bring in the jury.

19 (Jury enters.)

20 THE COURT: Good morning, members of the jury.

21 Please be seated.

22 Thank you again for your diligence in staying

23 with it. This period of time and having the nice
24 disposition that you appear to have, or is it because the
25 trial is coming to an end. I don't know what it is, but

OWEN M. WICKER, RPR OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER
8006
Reffsin-direct/Wallenstein


1 you seem to be in good form for which I'm happy to see.

2 You may proceed.

3 MR. WALLENSTEIN: Thank you, Your Honor.

4 M A R T I N R E F F S I N , having been previously

5 sworn by the Clerk of the Court, was examined and

6 testified as follows:

7 DIRECT EXAMINA TION

8 BY MR. WALLENSTEIN:

9 Q Mr. Reffsin, we've heard a significant amount of

10 testimony in this trial with respect to the loans that

11 Bruce Gordon took from Who's Who Worldwide. And you were

12 present when Mr. Rosenblatt testified with respect to the

13 treatment of those loans as loans rather than income?

14 A Yes. Yes, I was.

15 Q Can you explain why you treated them as loans and

16 under what circumstances you would have treated them as

17 income?

18 A Well, obviously Mr. Gordon did not say they were

19 income. Mr. Gordon said they were loans. To the extent

20 that he could prove to me they were loans, they would

21 remain loans. I explained to Mr. Gordon that in order for

22 them to be deemed loans he would have to meet certain

23 requirements such as repayment.
24 Q And did you see evidence of repayment?
25 A Yes. In January of 1993 he repaid $235,000.

OWEN M. WICKER, RPR OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER
8007
Reffsin-direct/Wallenstein


1 Q And would it be a fair statement that it was the

2 intention of Mr. Gordon based on what he told you that the

3 loans would in fact be repaid over time?

4 A Yes. We had several discussions during the course of

5 time in which he guaranteed me that the loans would be

6 repaid.

7 Q Now, you prepared the 433 A collection information

8 statements?

9 A Yes.

10 Q At what point in time?

11 A Around May. That's when they were physically

12 prepared.

13 Q Of what year?

14 A 1993.

15 Q And would it be a fair statement at the time you

16 prepared them you did not have the benefit of what we now

17 have which is almost five years of hindsight?

18 A That's correct.

19 Q So the bankruptcy had not yet occurred?

20 A That's correct.

21 Q And based upon information that you had from

22 Mr. Gordon and other sources, what was your expectation

23 with respect to 1994?
24 A 1994 was the year that Mr. Gordon agreed and I had
25 indicated that he would have to repay all the loans.

OWEN M. WICKER, RPR OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER
8008
Reffsin-direct/Wallenstein


1 Q That was your understanding in 1993?

2 A That's correct.

3 Q And did something occur that prevented that from

4 happening in 1994?

5 A Yes, the bankruptcy.

6 Q And that was in March of 1994?

7 A That's correct.

8 Q And with respect to the tax returns that were filed

9 on Mr. Gordon's behalf, would it be a fair statement you

10 treated the loans as loans and not income on those

11 returns?

12 A Yes, I did.

13 Q And that's for the reasons you've already stated; is

14 that correct?

15 A Yes.

16 Q Did you at any time enter into any agreement with

17 Mr. Gordon with respect to -- withdrawn.

18 Did you at any time have an agreement with

19 Mr. Gordon to in any way impede the Internal Revenue

20 Service?

21 A Absolutely not.

22 Q Was it your intention to file his returns and prepare

23 his financial returns in accord with your interpretation
24 of accountable principles?
25 A Yes, it was.

OWEN M. WICKER, RPR OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER
8009
Reffsin-cross/White


1 Q And in accord with your interpretation of the

2 Internal Revenue Code?

3 A Not the Internal Revenue Code. The needs of the

4 offer and compromise agent.

5 Q Did you prepare the documents and act on Mr. Gordon's

6 behalf in accord with your understanding of IRS procedures

7 and the law?

8 A Yes, I did.

9 MR . WALLENSTEIN: I have no further questions.

10 CROSS-EXAMINATION.

11 BY MR. WHITE:

12 Q Mr. Reffsin, let me see if I understand your

13 testimony. Is it your testimony that if any inaccurate

14 information was provided to the IRS, it wasn't done

15 knowingly by you?

16 A Inaccurate?

17 Q Yes.

18 A There was no inaccurate information prepared provided

19 to the IRS.

20 Q Well, you've heard testimony -- well --

21 THE COURT: Just hold it a minute, Mr. White.

22 You may proceed.

23 BY MR. WHITE:
24 Q Mr. Reffsin, let me show you Government's Exhibit 425
25 in evidence. That's a document that the jury has in their

OWEN M. WICKER, RPR OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER
8010
Reffsin-cross/White


1 books.

2 Now, that's a letter you sent to Frank Gagliardi

3 of the IRS; is that right?

4 A Yes, it is.

5 Q And that was in response to Mr. Gagliardi's letter

6 where he said he noticed unusual deposits in Mr. Gordon's

7 personal bank account, do you recall that?

8 A Yes, I do.

9 Q One of the things you attached to this letter which

10 is noted in paragraph 1 is a copy of a note that

11 Mr. Gordon signed to Joyce Grossman for $15,000, right?

12 A Yes.

13 Q If you turn the page to 425A, if you take it out of

14 the plastic, 425A is a copy of that note, right?

15 A Yes, it is.

16 Q And you've been present in court and heard testimony

17 that Mr. Gordon's son wasn't even dead on the date that

18 promissory note was executed, right?

19 A This was not presented by me. This was presented by

20 Mr. Gordon.

21 Q Mr. Reffsin, look at 425.

22 Who signed that letter?

23 A I did.
24 Q And it says, it's addressed to Mr. Gagliardi and it
25 says "pursuant to your request I have attached the

OWEN M. WICKER, RPR OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER
8011
Reffsin-cross/White


1 following information for your file."

2 Do you see that?

3 A Yes.

4 Q So you got that from Mr. Gordon, right?

5 A Yes.

6 Q And, so, you understand, do you not -- withdrawn.

7 You recall that Mrs. Grossman testified she never

8 made this loan and never even saw this note. Do you

9 remember that testimony?

10 A Yes, I do.

11 Q So I want to make sure I understand your testimony.

12 Mr. Gordon gave you that and if this is inaccurate, you

13 are saying you didn't know?

14 A That's correct.

15 Q So if this is completely bogus, Mr. Gordon lied to

16 you; is that your testimony?

17 A That's correct.

18 Q Look at 425B.

19 Mr. Gordon gave you that too, right?

20 A Yes, he did.

21 Q And if this is bogus then Mr. Gordon lied to you; is

22 that correct?

23 A That's correct.
24 Q Now, you indicated also to the IRS that -- well, you
25 -- let me rephrase my question.

OWEN M. WICKER, RPR OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER
8012
Reffsin-cross/White


1 Is it fair to say that the documents you

2 submitted in connection with the offer and compromise

3 indicated that Mr. Gordon had no ownership interest in

4 Who's Who Worldwide?

5 A Yes.

6 Q And you've heard the Grossmans' testimony at this

7 trial that they did not own 100 percent, they owned merely

8 25 percent. Do you recall that?

9 A Yes, I do.

10 Q So, again, that information is inaccurate, right?

11 A Yes, at this point I know it is inaccurate. Yes.

12 Q And, again, it's your testimony that if that

13 information is inaccurate it is because Mr. Gordon told

14 you inaccurate information; is that right?

15 A That's correct.

16 Q Now, you also indicated that you were aware of the

17 condominium at Hummingbird Road; is that correct?

18 A Yes.

19 Q And you were aware, were you not, that Mr. Gordon was

20 living there?

21 A I was aware he used it, yes.

22 Q And you were aware, were you not, that Mr. Gordon

23 claimed that it was for business purposes and not
24 personal, right?
25 A Yes.

OWEN M. WICKER, RPR OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER
8013
Reffsin-cross/White


1 Q And isn't it correct that you told Inspector

2 Biegelman and Agent Jordan that you thought that that

3 claim was "bullshit"?

4 A No, I didn't say that quite like that.

5 Q You didn't say that?

6 A I said it may be bullshit, but I couldn't make that

7 determination at that time.

8 Q But you thought it might be bullshit?

9 A Yes, he's telling me something. I have to believe

10 what he's telling me at the time he tells it to me.

11 Q But at the time you were talking to them, you didn't

12 believe it. You were thinking it was bullshit, right?

13 MR. WALLENSTEIN: Objection.

14 THE COURT: Overruled.

15 A Well, it's difficult to say because of everything

16 that happened between the time he purchased the

17 condominium and the time we had the discussion. Things

18 changed. And it's possible his position changed in terms

19 of the condominium.

20 Q Tell us what made you think that maybe it was

21 bullshit?

22 MR. WALLENSTEIN: Objection.

23 THE COURT: Overruled.
24 BY MR. WHITE:
25 Q What did you base that on?

OWEN M. WICKER, RPR OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER
8014
Reffsin-cross/White


1 A I didn't say. I said it may have been bullshit, only

2 time would tell me whether it was or not. The fact of the

3 occurrences that happened in 1993 and the fact that he

4 didn't open up the California office when he said he was

5 going to open up the California office. The fact that he

6 got involved in a legal battle with Reed Elsevier and

7 started to incur all of those expenses and the fact of the

8 bankruptcy, the time-frame was such that it was difficult

9 to know whether he was bullshiting at the time or not

10 bullshiting because how do you bring it into proper

11 perspective?

12 Q Well, you also testified that Mr. Gordon told you

13 that the 235,000 from Dr. Grossman in January of 1993 was

14 a loan to Mr. Gordon from Dr. Grossman; is that right?

15 A That's correct.

16 Q And he told you that -- Mr. Gordon was then applying

17 that to reduce his loan balance; is that correct?

18 A Yes, that's correct.

19 Q And you did that?

20 A Yes.

21 Q You've also been here for Dr. Grossman's testimony,

22 have you not, where he said he only gave that money back

23 because Mr. Gordon said he needed it for business purposes
24 to print the registry. You heard that, right?
25 A Yes, I heard.

OWEN M. WICKER, RPR OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER
8015
Reffsin-cross/White


1 MR. TRABULUS: Objection.

2 THE COURT: Overruled.






     
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The Who's Who Worldwide Registry websites are focused on the Who's Who Worldwide Registry tragedy, and the double scandal of government and judicial corruption in one of the Most Scandalous Trials of the Century and the concomitant news media blackout regarding this astonishing story.

Sixteen weeks of oft-explosive testimony, yet not a word in any of 1200 news archives. This alone supports the claim that this was a Most Embarassing Trial; in fact, one of the most embarassing trials.

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The Who's Who Worldwide Registry Tragedy
Thomas FX Dunn proving again that he may well be the Dumbest Lawyer In The Nation

Most Scandalous Trials of the Century   - The Who's Who Worldwide Registry Tragedy