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A4 U.S. NEWS
Thursday 24 sepTember 2020
Judge: Eric Trump must testify in NY probe before election

NEW YORK (AP) — Eric so "simply on the grounds
Trump must testify in a New of personal inconvenience
York investigation into his to the witness." He argued
family's business practices that the typical compli-
before the November pres- ance deadline courts have
idential election, a judge found is reasonable is five
ruled Wednesday, reject- days.
ing his lawyers' claims that Eric Trump's lawyers had
his "extreme travel sched- proposed four dates for
ule" on the campaign trail him to testify, the earliest
warranted a delay. being Nov. 19, which they
State Judge Arthur En- contended was just after
goron said President Don- James' office is scheduled
ald Trump's middle son, a to interview other witness-
Trump Organization execu- es in the investigation. Eric
tive, must comply with a Trump switched lawyers in
subpoena to give a depo- mid-July, Futerfas said, con-
sition under oath no later tributing to the need for a
than Oct. 7, adding that delay.
the court is not "bound by Eric Trump did not partici-
the timelines of the national pate in Wednesday's hear-
election." ing, which was held via Sky-
New York Attorney General pe. Eric, the third of Trump's
Letitia James went to court five children, was sched-
to enforce Eric Trump's sub- Eric Trump, the son of President Donald Trump, greets supporters at a campaign rally, Tuesday, uled to appear Wednes-
poena after his lawyers Sept. 17, 2020, in Saco, Maine. day at a campaign event
abruptly canceled a July Associated Press in Glendale, Arizona, called
interview with investigators "Evangelicals for Trump:
in her office's probe, which dictate how or when our poena, but that he could James' office is seeking as Praise, Prayer, and Patrio-
is focused on whether the investigation will proceed do so only after the Nov. part of the civil probe. tism."
Trump Organization lied or set the parameters of a 3 election. Beside schedul- "As the world knows, James went to court to
about the value of its assets lawful investigation," James ing conflicts related to his there's an election going compel Eric Trump and
in order to get loans or tax said. "The court's order to- father's reelection cam- on in about four weeks in other business associates to
benefits. day makes clear that no paign, they said they want- this country, maybe five testify and turn over docu-
Eric Trump, the company's one is above the law, not ed "to avoid the use of his weeks," Futerfas argued. ments as part of a civil in-
executive vice president even an organization or an deposition attendance for "Eric Trump is a vital and in- vestigation into whether
of development and ac- individual with the name political purposes." tegral part of that, and he's the family's company, the
quisitions, was first served Trump." At Wednesday's hearing, traveling just about seven Trump Organization, lied
with the subpoena in May. A message seeking com- Futerfas said they were days a week." about the value of assets
James, a Democrat, said in ment on the ruling was left "happy for him to sit down Matthew Colangelo, a law- including a suburban New
a statement after the ruling with Eric Trump's lawyer, and be deposed," but that yer for the attorney gener- York City estate.
that "justice and the rule of Alan Futerfas. they needed more time al's office, countered that Investigators have yet to
law prevailed today." In a court filing last week, before he testified to re- Eric Trump's lawyers didn't determine whether any
"To be clear, no entity or his lawyers said he was will- view with him thousands of have a legal basis to seek law was broken, James' of-
individual is allowed to ing to comply with the sub- pages of documents that a delay and were doing fice has said.q

eBay workers who sent spiders to couple to plead guilty

BOSTON (AP) — Four former eBay Inc. employees have agreed to plead name on them to their neighbor's house, planned to break into the cou-
guilty to their roles in a campaign of intimidation that included sending ple's garage to install a GPS device on their car, and posted the couple's
live spiders and cockroaches to the home of a Massachusetts couple names and address online, advertising things like yard sales and encour-
who ran an online newsletter critical of the auction site, federal prosecu- aging strangers to knock on the door if the pair wasn't outside, officials
tors said Wednesday. said.
"Four former employees of #eBay are scheduled to plead guilty on Oct. 8 The suspects engaged in a "systematic campaign fueled by the resourc-
at 2pm via zoom in federal court in #Boston," according to a tweet from es of a Fortune 500 company to emotionally and psychologically terror-
the official account of the U.S. attorney's office in Massachusetts. "The ize this middle-aged couple in Natick," U.S. Attorney Andrew Lelling said
defendants are charged w/ participating in a cyberstalking campaign at a news conference when charges were announced in June.
that targeted a Massachusetts couple." An internal investigation was launched after San Jose, California-based
The four expected to plead guilty are Brian Gilbert, 51; Stephanie Popp, eBay was notified by law enforcement of "suspicious actions by its secu-
32; Stephanie Stockwell, 26; and Veronica Zea, 26, according to The Bos- rity personnel," company officials wrote in a prepared statement. The
ton Globe. employees were ultimately fired, the company said.
All live in San Jose, California, except for Stockwell, who lives in Redwood Popp was a senior manager of global intelligence at eBay; Gilbert was
City, California. senior manager of special operations for eBay's Global Security Team;
They are among seven former eBay employees charged in the case, in Stockwell was manager of eBay's Global Intelligence Center; and Zea
which the Massachusetts couple had other disturbing items sent to their was an eBay contractor who worked as an intelligence analyst in the
home, including a funeral wreath and a bloody pig Halloween mask. Global Intelligence Center. Authorities say they were working at eBay at
They are all charged with conspiracy to commit cyberstalking and con- the time of the alleged harassment.
spiracy to tamper with a witness. Their lawyers either declined to com- Court documents say the couple was targeted after their newsletter
ment or didn't immediately return emails seeking comment Wednesday. published an article in August 2019 about a lawsuit filed by eBay accus-
The employees also sent pornographic magazines with the husband's ing Amazon of poaching its sellers.q