Altman cleared in BCCI fraud case: Verdict also marks victory for lawyer's partner Clark Clifford

ROBERT ALTMAN, an influential Washington lawyer, has been acquitted of charges that he helped the scandal-ridden Bank of Credit and Commerce International secretly take control of a big US bank.

At the weekend a Manhattan jury found Mr Altman innocent of engaging in banking fraud and filing false documents with New York state banking regulators.

The verdict is also a victory for Mr Altman's mentor and law partner, Clark Clifford, the 86-year-old former US Defense Secretary, who was indicted but not put on trial because he is recovering from heart surgery.

But it is a bad setback for Robert Morgenthau, the Manhattan District Attorney whose office spearheaded the investigation into BCCI.

That inquiry precipitated BCCI's worldwide closure in 1991 amid claims that it was part of a global operation that laundered drug money, stole billions of dollars and handled secret bank accounts for the CIA. In a statement Mr Morgenthau said: 'We accept the verdict, of course. Justice has been served. However, our investigation of BCCI continues.'

Prosecutors alleged that Mr Altman, 46, disguised BCCI's role as a main shareholder of Washington-based First American Bankshares Inc, allowing it secretly to control the bank. He and Mr Clifford, a highly prestigious attorney who has been the confidant of four Democratic presidents, represented BCCI and Middle East investors and senior executives at First American.

The two high-powered lawyers were accused of making millions in legal fees and accepting BCCI loans for stock - sweetheart deals which prosecutors said amounted to bribes.

But Mr Altman's lawyers argued that he had been made a scapegoat by bank regulators who were trying to shift the blame for their failure to detect BCCI's financial links with First American. They said regulators were told about BCCI's role as financial adviser to First American, but did not object until they began to receive inquiries from Congress and the media.

'The prosecution should never have brought the case in the first place,' a beaming Mr Altman said after the verdict. His acquittal, which came after four days of jury deliberations, ended a five-month trial in which 45 witnesses were called.

Five other charges, including allegations of bribery and conspiracy, were dismissed earlier in the case. As his acquittal was announced, his wife, Lynda Carter, star of the TV series Wonder Woman, leapt into his arms. The couple, who are among the most socially prominent people in Washington, were warmly congratulated by jurors, several of whom wept.

But Mr Altman and Mr Clifford both face further battles. Last year federal prosecutors dropped similar criminal charges against them to allow the state case to go ahead. These could now be refiled. They also face civil suits from the Federal Reserve Board and directors of First American.

(Photograph omitted)