Ex-fugitive convicted in $100M Navy charity fraud case

Ex-fugitive convicted in $100M Navy charity fraud case
CBS News
November 14, 2013

CLEVELAND A mysterious defendant in a $100 million, cross-country Navy veterans charity fraud case was convicted Thursday of racketeering, theft, money laundering and other charges.

The jury, which deliberated for about three hours Wednesday before handing down guilty verdicts on all 23 counts, heard nothing from the ex-fugitive, who changed his mind and decided against testifying.

His attorney said he wanted to tell his story but worried about his mental state if he faced aggressive cross-examination by prosecutors.

The defendant identifies himself as 67-year-old Bobby Thompson, but authorities say he's Harvard-trained attorney John Donald Cody. He was indicted in 2010, disappeared for nearly two years and was arrested last year in Portland, Ore.

He faces up to 67 years in prison at his sentencing, which was scheduled for Dec. 16.

The defendant rolled his eyes toward the ceiling and rocked on his feet as the verdicts were read.

Deputies cuffed his wrists after the first guilty verdict was announced. Unlike the last two days of his trial, the defendant showed up with his shirt buttoned and his hair combed.

He was charged with looting the United States Navy Veterans Association, a charity he ran in Tampa, Fla. As his five-week trial wound down on Tuesday, he had appeared disheveled in court, so much so that the judge suggested a break to allow him to get a clean shirt and comb his hair.
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