A ‘Hail Mary’?_其他_趣味英语-查字典英语网

A ‘Hail Mary’?

Don't talk to the media. Don't return home, even for funerals. Don’t hang around with former criminal associates, friends or former neighbors.

And, by all means, don’t commit a crime.

For Reynolds, who was known in his hometown of Brockton, Mass., as Larry Reservitz, the rules proved too much.

He would visit occasionally with a lawyer he knew from college on trips to New York. He drew attention to himself by playing in high-stakes poker tournaments. And, according to Reynolds, he helped launder billions of dollars in a Ponzi scheme allegedly masterminded by Wayzata businessman Tom Petters.

Petters goes to trial next month on conspiracy, fraud and money-laundering charges, and Reynolds’ sordid history and participation in the witness protection program could add a rich new subplot to the lawyers’ arguments.

The criminal history of Larry Reservitz could give ammo to Petters’ attorneys as they attempt to raise questions about the government’s oversight of its own witness, said lawyers not affiliated with the case.

“This is a dream guy for a defense attorney,” said St. Paul lawyer Ron Rosenbaum. “You don’t get into the witness protection program because you’re a Boy Scout,” he said.

Rosenbaum said he expects Petters’ lawyers to portray Reynolds as a central figure in the alleged $3.65 billion Ponzi scheme.

Recently unsealed documents in the Petters case reveal that Reynolds, one of his key cronies in the alleged fraud, appears to have a sordid criminal background that was largely hidden from public view for the last two decades through the witness program.