David Friedland
Encyclopedia
David J. Friedland is an American lawyer
and Democratic Party
politician from Hudson County, New Jersey
who served in both houses of the New Jersey Legislature
, serving in the New Jersey General Assembly
from 1966 to 1974 and then was elected to the Senate
, serving from 1978 until his conviction on racketeering charges in 1980. He disappeared in September 1985 while awaiting sentencing by faking his death in a supposed drowning incident off Grand Bahama
and was one of the U.S. government's most wanted fugitives until his capture in the Maldives
in 1987 where he drew attention to himself after creating a successful chain of scuba diving shops.
. His father was Jacob Friedland, a labor attorney who had served in the General Assembly from 1939 until 1952. He attended Stevens Academy in Hoboken
and graduated from Tufts University
in 1957. He received a law degree from Rutgers School of Law—Newark
in 1960 and was admitted to the bar in 1961.
in Reynolds v. Sims
, establishing the one man, one vote principle that state legislative districts must be approximately equal in size, Friedland filed suit in New Jersey Supreme Court
on behalf of Christopher Jackman of the Laundry Workers Union and Winfield Chasmar, Jr. of the Paper Box Workers Union, challenging a system under which each county was represented by a single member in the New Jersey Senate. The senate enacted a proposal whereby each senator's vote would be weighted based on the population of the county represented, under which Cape May County
's senator would receive one vote while the senator from Essex County
would receive 19.1, in direct relation to the ratio of residents between counties. In a decision issued on December 15, 1964, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously that the weighted voting system as adopted was unconstitutional. The court ordered that interim measures be established for the 1965 legislative elections, in which weighted voting could be used as a temporary measure, and that the needed constitutional changes to restructure the New Jersey Legislature to be in compliance with "one man, one vote" requirements be in place before elections taking place in 1967.
, Friedland was found to have violated judicial ethics for his efforts in attempting to get charges dropped against an alleged Mafia loan shark
. Friedland faced potential disbarment by the court and could have faced censure or expulsion by the New Jersey Legislature. On July 27, 1971, the New Jersey Supreme Court suspended Friedland from the practice of law for a period of six months. Friedland asserted that he had done nothing wrong and would run for re-election. He insisted that as "[t]here had been no charge of impropriety in connection with [his] legislative duties", that he expected that the General Assembly would take no legislative action against him.
Relating to that same case, Friedland was one of three legislators targeted in testimony by Assistant New Jersey General William J. Brennan 3rd to the New Jersey Assembly on December 30, 1968, in which Brennan accused Friedland and two other legislators of being "entirely too comfortable with members of organized crime". Brennan's testimony was based on New Jersey State Police
files which alleged that Friedland had acted as the middleman to suppress criminal complaints against a loan shark. Friedland denied Brennan's allegations and demanded his resignation and denied the claims, stating that he had been attempting to settle a usurious
loan and that he had not talked to any of the complaining witnesses.
On January 11, 1972, Friedland was one of four Democrats who voted to give the minority Republicans control of the General Assembly, electing Thomas Kean
as Assembly Speaker. He justified his actions based on claims that the Democratic leadership had been ignoring the needs of Hudson County, and was joined by Hudson County legislators Michael F. Esposito and David Wallace, along with Edward J. Higgins from nearby Elizabeth
. As part of the deal with the Republicans, Friedland was appointed as chair of the bipartisan Assembly Conference Committee. Democratic leaders in the Assembly had pushed for S. Howard Woodson
of Trenton, New Jersey
, who would have been the Assembly's first African American
Speaker, and charges of racism were leveled by fellow Democrats against Friedland. Democratic Assemblyman Kenneth A. Gewertz of Gloucester County
shouted that "Jesus Christ had his Judas, the Democrats now have their David Friedland". Friedland had wanted the Democrats to name him as Speaker, but they declined based on his involvement in the loan sharking case and that recent political scandals in Hudson County would reflect poorly on Democrats statewide.
Friedland was one of 26 Senators to vote in favor of a 1978 bill that restored the death penalty for first degree murder, stating that the people wanted the death penalty restored and that "the fallacy of elitism is that it believes its judgments are superior to those of the common herd".
He served in the Senate from 1978 until his April 1980 conviction, after which he resigned to focus on his appeal. He was succeeded by fellow Democrat James A. Galdieri
who took office in a November 1980 special election.
Local 701 based in North Brunswick
to companies controlled by Barry S. Marlin, an attorney who had been convicted of swindling $43 million in various schemes. After his indictment, Friedland expressed confidence that he would be exonerated.
On April 11, 1980, Friedland and his father were convicted by a jury for taking kickbacks in arranging loans from the Teamsters pension fund, income tax evasion and obstruction of justice
for asking a witness to lie to a grand jury. Still proclaiming his innocence and insisting that he was not obligated to resign as the acts for which he was convicted took place prior to his election, Friedland stated that he would resign immediately from his Senate seat to devote his time to an appeal of the verdict. In 1982, he reached an agreement with the United States Attorney
's office in Newark, New Jersey
under which he would avoid prison in exchange for his assistance in recording incriminating conversations with his former associates. While in the United States Federal Witness Protection Program
he took a job with a mortgage firm owned by Joseph J. Higgins, a former member of the New Jersey General Assembly, and they made additional efforts to defraud the same pension fund.
In 1983, United States Attorney for New Jersey W. Hunt Dumont
was reported by The New York Times to be pursuing a major investigation of as many as 50 individuals based on evidence that Friedland had provided. Despite his conviction, Friedland was in Federal custody and told a reporter who had spotted him at Miami International Airport
that he could end up spending more than a year in assisting with Federal prosecutions.
While awaiting sentencing on September 2, 1985, the United States Coast Guard
received a call from a boat off of Grand Bahama reporting that Friedland had disappeared while scuba diving. Friedland was said to have taken pain killers before diving with a friend at a spot 12 miles off of Grand Bahama and had failed to surface. His body was not discovered in an air-sea search and a warrant was issued for his arrest.
He went on the run, using a fake United States passport
and traveling under the alias of Richard Smith Harley. During his time on the lam, he had been traced to Kenya
, Paris
, Venice
, Hong Kong
and Singapore
and worked his way up to become the number one fugitive wanted by the United States Marshals Service
. In December 1987, two years after his disappearance, he was arrested by officials in Malé
, capital of Maldives, an island country in the Indian Ocean. While in Maldives, Friedland did little to avoid attention, including posing for a post card in which he was in scuba gear feeding a live shark with food held in his own mouth.
He was flown back to the United States, arriving at John F. Kennedy International Airport
on December 28, 1987, under the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service and taken for arraignment in Federal District court in Brooklyn. Upon his return he vowed to fight the charges against him, but said that "it's good to be back in the United States". Arthur Borinsky, the United States Marshal for New Jersey, quoted Friedland as stating that "he really got tired of running".
In December 1987, United States Judge Dickinson Richards Debevoise
ordered Friedland to serve a sentence of seven years in Federal prison, rejecting pleas for leniency from Friedland and claims that the U.S. Attorney's office had violated the terms of a 1982 agreement under which he become an informant in corruption investigations.
In a January 1988 hearing prior to his trial for conspiracy to defraud the union pension fund, then-First United States Attorney Michael Chertoff
told judge John F. Gerry
that, while he was in the Maldives, Friedland had contacted Libya
n leader Muammar al-Gaddafi
as part of an effort to arrange "asylum in Libya or any anti-American country". In September 1988, four days after testimony began in his racketeering trial, Friedland entered a guilty plea to a count of conspiracy under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act
(RICO) as part of deal with authorities under which mail fraud and wire fraud
charges would be dropped. On December 2, 1988, he was sentenced on the RICO count to a 15-year sentence to be served concurrently with the 7-year term applied for his original conviction. A probation officer estimated and the court indicated at that time that Friedland's parole guideline range was between 40 and 52 months.
After Friedland's attorney passed on an offer under which his client would pass on details of illegal drug activity based on information he obtained from other inmates, then-United States Attorney Samuel Alito
responded on April 3, 1989, that his office would accept any information offered but would not make any promise to assist Friedland based on the use of any information Friedland might provide. Bypassing Alito's successor Michael Chertoff, Friedland made a deal with Drug Enforcement Administration
special agent Anthony Longarzo, under which Friedland provided information that led to several arrests and the seizure of drugs in 1990. In exchange, Longarzo was supposed to recommend to the court and the United States Parole Commission
that Friedland's incarceration be shortened.
Friedland was released after eight years at the Federal Correctional Complex, Coleman in Coleman, Florida
and was to spend several months in a halfway house
run by the Salvation Army
in West Palm Beach, Florida
. He was released from the halfway house in July 1997, after serving a total of nine years of his 15-year sentence. He found work with an advertising firm.
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
and Democratic Party
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
politician from Hudson County, New Jersey
Hudson County, New Jersey
Hudson County is the smallest county in New Jersey and one of the most densely populated in United States. It takes its name from the Hudson River, which creates part of its eastern border. Part of the New York metropolitan area, its county seat and largest city is Jersey City.- Municipalities...
who served in both houses of the New Jersey Legislature
New Jersey Legislature
The New Jersey Legislature is the legislative branch of the government of the U.S. state of New Jersey. In its current form, as defined by the New Jersey Constitution of 1947, the Legislature consists of two houses: the General Assembly and the Senate...
, serving in the New Jersey General Assembly
New Jersey General Assembly
The New Jersey General Assembly is the lower house of the New Jersey Legislature.Since the election of 1967 , the Assembly has consisted of 80 members. Two members are elected from each of New Jersey's 40 legislative districts for a term of two years, each representing districts with average...
from 1966 to 1974 and then was elected to the Senate
New Jersey Senate
The New Jersey Senate was established as the upper house of the New Jersey Legislature by the Constitution of 1844, replacing the Legislative Council. From 1844 until 1965 New Jersey's counties elected one Senator, each. Under the 1844 Constitution the term of office was three years. The 1947...
, serving from 1978 until his conviction on racketeering charges in 1980. He disappeared in September 1985 while awaiting sentencing by faking his death in a supposed drowning incident off Grand Bahama
Grand Bahama
Grand Bahama is one of the northernmost of the islands of the Bahamas, and the closest major island to the United States, lying off the state of Florida. Grand Bahama is the fifth largest island in the Bahamas island chain of approximately 700 islands and 2,400 cays...
and was one of the U.S. government's most wanted fugitives until his capture in the Maldives
Maldives
The Maldives , , officially Republic of Maldives , also referred to as the Maldive Islands, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean formed by a double chain of twenty-six atolls oriented north-south off India's Lakshadweep islands, between Minicoy Island and...
in 1987 where he drew attention to himself after creating a successful chain of scuba diving shops.
Early life
Friedland was born in 1937 in Jersey CityJersey City, New Jersey
Jersey City is the seat of Hudson County, New Jersey, United States.Part of the New York metropolitan area, Jersey City lies between the Hudson River and Upper New York Bay across from Lower Manhattan and the Hackensack River and Newark Bay...
. His father was Jacob Friedland, a labor attorney who had served in the General Assembly from 1939 until 1952. He attended Stevens Academy in Hoboken
Hoboken, New Jersey
Hoboken is a city in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population was 50,005. The city is part of the New York metropolitan area and contains Hoboken Terminal, a major transportation hub for the region...
and graduated from Tufts University
Tufts University
Tufts University is a private research university located in Medford/Somerville, near Boston, Massachusetts. It is organized into ten schools, including two undergraduate programs and eight graduate divisions, on four campuses in Massachusetts and on the eastern border of France...
in 1957. He received a law degree from Rutgers School of Law—Newark
Rutgers School of Law—Newark
Rutgers School of Law–Newark is the oldest of three law schools in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is located at the S.I. Newhouse Center for Law and Justice, at 123 Washington Street, in downtown Newark...
in 1960 and was admitted to the bar in 1961.
One man, one vote
In the wake of the 1964 decision by the Supreme Court of the United StatesSupreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
in Reynolds v. Sims
Reynolds v. Sims
Reynolds v. Sims, 377 U.S. 533 was a United States Supreme Court case that ruled that state legislature districts had to be roughly equal in population.-Facts:...
, establishing the one man, one vote principle that state legislative districts must be approximately equal in size, Friedland filed suit in New Jersey Supreme Court
New Jersey Supreme Court
The New Jersey Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It has existed in three different forms under the three different state constitutions since the independence of the state in 1776...
on behalf of Christopher Jackman of the Laundry Workers Union and Winfield Chasmar, Jr. of the Paper Box Workers Union, challenging a system under which each county was represented by a single member in the New Jersey Senate. The senate enacted a proposal whereby each senator's vote would be weighted based on the population of the county represented, under which Cape May County
Cape May County, New Jersey
-Climate:Being the southernmost point in New Jersey, Cape May has fairly mild wintertime temperatures. Contrary to that, the summertime has lower temperatures than most places in the state, making the county a popular place to escape the heat. It is in zone 7a/7b, which is the same as parts of...
's senator would receive one vote while the senator from Essex County
Essex County, New Jersey
Essex County is a county located in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the United States 2010 Census, the population was 783,969, ranking it third in the state after Bergen County and Middlesex County; Essex County's population has declined from 786,147 as of the bureau's...
would receive 19.1, in direct relation to the ratio of residents between counties. In a decision issued on December 15, 1964, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously that the weighted voting system as adopted was unconstitutional. The court ordered that interim measures be established for the 1965 legislative elections, in which weighted voting could be used as a temporary measure, and that the needed constitutional changes to restructure the New Jersey Legislature to be in compliance with "one man, one vote" requirements be in place before elections taking place in 1967.
General Assembly
Friedland was first elected to the New Jersey General Assembly in 1966, serving there until 1974. In a judicial finding announced in February 1971 after a hearing by the New Jersey Supreme CourtNew Jersey Supreme Court
The New Jersey Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It has existed in three different forms under the three different state constitutions since the independence of the state in 1776...
, Friedland was found to have violated judicial ethics for his efforts in attempting to get charges dropped against an alleged Mafia loan shark
Loan shark
A loan shark is a person or body that offers unsecured loans at illegally high interest rates to individuals, often enforcing repayment by blackmail or threats of violence....
. Friedland faced potential disbarment by the court and could have faced censure or expulsion by the New Jersey Legislature. On July 27, 1971, the New Jersey Supreme Court suspended Friedland from the practice of law for a period of six months. Friedland asserted that he had done nothing wrong and would run for re-election. He insisted that as "[t]here had been no charge of impropriety in connection with [his] legislative duties", that he expected that the General Assembly would take no legislative action against him.
Relating to that same case, Friedland was one of three legislators targeted in testimony by Assistant New Jersey General William J. Brennan 3rd to the New Jersey Assembly on December 30, 1968, in which Brennan accused Friedland and two other legislators of being "entirely too comfortable with members of organized crime". Brennan's testimony was based on New Jersey State Police
New Jersey State Police
The New Jersey State Police is the state police force for the state of New Jersey. It is a general-powers police agency with state wide jurisdiction when requested by the Governor, designated by Troop Sectors.-History:...
files which alleged that Friedland had acted as the middleman to suppress criminal complaints against a loan shark. Friedland denied Brennan's allegations and demanded his resignation and denied the claims, stating that he had been attempting to settle a usurious
Usury
Usury Originally, when the charging of interest was still banned by Christian churches, usury simply meant the charging of interest at any rate . In countries where the charging of interest became acceptable, the term came to be used for interest above the rate allowed by law...
loan and that he had not talked to any of the complaining witnesses.
On January 11, 1972, Friedland was one of four Democrats who voted to give the minority Republicans control of the General Assembly, electing Thomas Kean
Thomas Kean
Thomas Howard Kean is an American Republican Party politician, who served as the 48th Governor of New Jersey from 1982 to 1990. Kean is best known globally, however, for his 2002 appointment as Chairman of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States, widely known as the...
as Assembly Speaker. He justified his actions based on claims that the Democratic leadership had been ignoring the needs of Hudson County, and was joined by Hudson County legislators Michael F. Esposito and David Wallace, along with Edward J. Higgins from nearby Elizabeth
Elizabeth, New Jersey
Elizabeth is a city in Union County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city had a total population of 124,969, retaining its ranking as New Jersey's fourth largest city with an increase of 4,401 residents from its 2000 Census population of 120,568...
. As part of the deal with the Republicans, Friedland was appointed as chair of the bipartisan Assembly Conference Committee. Democratic leaders in the Assembly had pushed for S. Howard Woodson
S. Howard Woodson
Samuel Howard Woodson, Jr. was an American pastor, civil rights leader, and Democratic Party politician from New Jersey. He was the first African American to serve as Speaker of the New Jersey General Assembly.-Biography:...
of Trenton, New Jersey
Trenton, New Jersey
Trenton is the capital of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Trenton had a population of 84,913...
, who would have been the Assembly's first African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
Speaker, and charges of racism were leveled by fellow Democrats against Friedland. Democratic Assemblyman Kenneth A. Gewertz of Gloucester County
Gloucester County, New Jersey
Gloucester County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2010 Census, the population was 288,288. Its county seat is Woodbury....
shouted that "Jesus Christ had his Judas, the Democrats now have their David Friedland". Friedland had wanted the Democrats to name him as Speaker, but they declined based on his involvement in the loan sharking case and that recent political scandals in Hudson County would reflect poorly on Democrats statewide.
State Senate
Friedland, a resident of Jersey City, won an easy race in November 1977 over his Republican opponent to win a seat in the New Jersey Senate. Though Democrats lost seats, they retained control of the Senate.Friedland was one of 26 Senators to vote in favor of a 1978 bill that restored the death penalty for first degree murder, stating that the people wanted the death penalty restored and that "the fallacy of elitism is that it believes its judgments are superior to those of the common herd".
He served in the Senate from 1978 until his April 1980 conviction, after which he resigned to focus on his appeal. He was succeeded by fellow Democrat James A. Galdieri
James A. Galdieri
James Anthony Galdieri was an American Democratic Party politician from Jersey City who was elected to represent portions of Hudson County in the New Jersey Senate in a special election held to fill a vacancy created when a sitting member of the Senate was removed.-Biography:Galdieri was born in...
who took office in a November 1980 special election.
Conviction and disappearance
Friedland was indicted in October 1979 together with his father Jacob for their role in accepting $360,000 in bribes to arrange a $4 million loan from the pension fund of TeamstersTeamsters
The International Brotherhood of Teamsters is a labor union in the United States and Canada. Formed in 1903 by the merger of several local and regional locals of teamsters, the union now represents a diverse membership of blue-collar and professional workers in both the public and private sectors....
Local 701 based in North Brunswick
North Brunswick Township, New Jersey
-Demographics:At the 2010 census, there were 40,742 people, 13,635 households and 9,367 families residing in the township. The population density was 3,018.3 per square mile . There were 13,932 housing units at an average density of 1,158.8 per square mile...
to companies controlled by Barry S. Marlin, an attorney who had been convicted of swindling $43 million in various schemes. After his indictment, Friedland expressed confidence that he would be exonerated.
On April 11, 1980, Friedland and his father were convicted by a jury for taking kickbacks in arranging loans from the Teamsters pension fund, income tax evasion and obstruction of justice
Obstruction of justice
The crime of obstruction of justice, in United States jurisdictions, refers to the crime of interfering with the work of police, investigators, regulatory agencies, prosecutors, or other officials...
for asking a witness to lie to a grand jury. Still proclaiming his innocence and insisting that he was not obligated to resign as the acts for which he was convicted took place prior to his election, Friedland stated that he would resign immediately from his Senate seat to devote his time to an appeal of the verdict. In 1982, he reached an agreement with the United States Attorney
United States Attorney
United States Attorneys represent the United States federal government in United States district court and United States court of appeals. There are 93 U.S. Attorneys stationed throughout the United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands...
's office in Newark, New Jersey
Newark, New Jersey
Newark is the largest city in the American state of New Jersey, and the seat of Essex County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Newark had a population of 277,140, maintaining its status as the largest municipality in New Jersey. It is the 68th largest city in the U.S...
under which he would avoid prison in exchange for his assistance in recording incriminating conversations with his former associates. While in the United States Federal Witness Protection Program
United States Federal Witness Protection Program
The United States Federal Witness Protection Program is a witness protection program administered by the United States Department of Justice and operated by the United States Marshals Service that is designed to protect threatened witnesses before, during, and after a trial.A few states, including...
he took a job with a mortgage firm owned by Joseph J. Higgins, a former member of the New Jersey General Assembly, and they made additional efforts to defraud the same pension fund.
In 1983, United States Attorney for New Jersey W. Hunt Dumont
W. Hunt Dumont
align="right"|Wayne Hunt Dumont is an American lawyer and judge who served as United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey from 1981 to 1985.-Biography:...
was reported by The New York Times to be pursuing a major investigation of as many as 50 individuals based on evidence that Friedland had provided. Despite his conviction, Friedland was in Federal custody and told a reporter who had spotted him at Miami International Airport
Miami International Airport
Miami International Airport , also known as MIA and historically Wilcox Field, is the primary airport serving the South Florida area...
that he could end up spending more than a year in assisting with Federal prosecutions.
While awaiting sentencing on September 2, 1985, the United States Coast Guard
United States Coast Guard
The United States Coast Guard is a branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven U.S. uniformed services. The Coast Guard is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency...
received a call from a boat off of Grand Bahama reporting that Friedland had disappeared while scuba diving. Friedland was said to have taken pain killers before diving with a friend at a spot 12 miles off of Grand Bahama and had failed to surface. His body was not discovered in an air-sea search and a warrant was issued for his arrest.
He went on the run, using a fake United States passport
United States passport
United States passports are passports issued to citizens and non-citizen nationals of the United States of America. They are issued exclusively by the U.S. Department of State. Besides issuing passports , also limited use passport cards are issued by the same organization subject to the same...
and traveling under the alias of Richard Smith Harley. During his time on the lam, he had been traced to Kenya
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
, Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
, Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
and Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
and worked his way up to become the number one fugitive wanted by the United States Marshals Service
United States Marshals Service
The United States Marshals Service is a United States federal law enforcement agency within the United States Department of Justice . The office of U.S. Marshal is the oldest federal law enforcement office in the United States; it was created by the Judiciary Act of 1789...
. In December 1987, two years after his disappearance, he was arrested by officials in Malé
Malé
Malé , is the capital and most populous city in the Republic of Maldives. It is located at the southern edge of North Malé Atoll . It is also one of the Administrative divisions of the Maldives. Traditionally it was the King's Island, from where the ancient Maldive Royal dynasties ruled and where...
, capital of Maldives, an island country in the Indian Ocean. While in Maldives, Friedland did little to avoid attention, including posing for a post card in which he was in scuba gear feeding a live shark with food held in his own mouth.
He was flown back to the United States, arriving at John F. Kennedy International Airport
John F. Kennedy International Airport
John F. Kennedy International Airport is an international airport located in the borough of Queens in New York City, about southeast of Lower Manhattan. It is the busiest international air passenger gateway to the United States, handling more international traffic than any other airport in North...
on December 28, 1987, under the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service and taken for arraignment in Federal District court in Brooklyn. Upon his return he vowed to fight the charges against him, but said that "it's good to be back in the United States". Arthur Borinsky, the United States Marshal for New Jersey, quoted Friedland as stating that "he really got tired of running".
In December 1987, United States Judge Dickinson Richards Debevoise
Dickinson Richards Debevoise
Dickinson Richards Debevoise is a U.S. Senior District Judge on the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey.-Biography:...
ordered Friedland to serve a sentence of seven years in Federal prison, rejecting pleas for leniency from Friedland and claims that the U.S. Attorney's office had violated the terms of a 1982 agreement under which he become an informant in corruption investigations.
In a January 1988 hearing prior to his trial for conspiracy to defraud the union pension fund, then-First United States Attorney Michael Chertoff
Michael Chertoff
Michael Chertoff was the second United States Secretary of Homeland Security under President George W. Bush and co-author of the USA PATRIOT Act. He previously served as a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, as a federal prosecutor, and as assistant U.S. Attorney...
told judge John F. Gerry
John F. Gerry
Judge John Francis Gerry was the chief United States district judge on the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey for seven years and a former top official of the policy-making arm of the Federal bench....
that, while he was in the Maldives, Friedland had contacted Libya
Libya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
n leader Muammar al-Gaddafi
Muammar al-Gaddafi
Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar Gaddafi or "September 1942" 20 October 2011), commonly known as Muammar Gaddafi or Colonel Gaddafi, was the official ruler of the Libyan Arab Republic from 1969 to 1977 and then the "Brother Leader" of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya from 1977 to 2011.He seized power in a...
as part of an effort to arrange "asylum in Libya or any anti-American country". In September 1988, four days after testimony began in his racketeering trial, Friedland entered a guilty plea to a count of conspiracy under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act
Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act
The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, commonly referred to as the RICO Act or simply RICO, is a United States federal law that provides for extended criminal penalties and a civil cause of action for acts performed as part of an ongoing criminal organization...
(RICO) as part of deal with authorities under which mail fraud and wire fraud
Wire fraud
Mail and wire fraud is a federal crime in the United States. Together, 18 U.S.C. §§ 1341, 1343, and 1346 reach any fraudulent scheme or artifice to intentionally deprive another of property or honest services with a nexus to mail or wire communication....
charges would be dropped. On December 2, 1988, he was sentenced on the RICO count to a 15-year sentence to be served concurrently with the 7-year term applied for his original conviction. A probation officer estimated and the court indicated at that time that Friedland's parole guideline range was between 40 and 52 months.
After Friedland's attorney passed on an offer under which his client would pass on details of illegal drug activity based on information he obtained from other inmates, then-United States Attorney Samuel Alito
Samuel Alito
Samuel Anthony Alito, Jr. is an Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. He was nominated by President George W. Bush and has served on the court since January 31, 2006....
responded on April 3, 1989, that his office would accept any information offered but would not make any promise to assist Friedland based on the use of any information Friedland might provide. Bypassing Alito's successor Michael Chertoff, Friedland made a deal with Drug Enforcement Administration
Drug Enforcement Administration
The Drug Enforcement Administration is a federal law enforcement agency under the United States Department of Justice, tasked with combating drug smuggling and use within the United States...
special agent Anthony Longarzo, under which Friedland provided information that led to several arrests and the seizure of drugs in 1990. In exchange, Longarzo was supposed to recommend to the court and the United States Parole Commission
United States Parole Commission
The United States Parole Commission is the parole board responsible to grant or deny parole and to supervise those released on parole to incarcerated individuals who come under its jurisdiction. It is part of the United States Department of Justice....
that Friedland's incarceration be shortened.
Friedland was released after eight years at the Federal Correctional Complex, Coleman in Coleman, Florida
Coleman, Florida
Coleman is a city in Sumter County, Florida, United States. The population was 647 at the 2000 census. According to the U.S Census estimates of 2005, the city had a population of 679.-Geography:Coleman is located at ....
and was to spend several months in a halfway house
Halfway house
The purpose of a halfway house, also called a recovery house or sober house, is generally to allow people to begin the process of reintegration with society, while still providing monitoring and support; this is generally believed to reduce the risk of recidivism or relapse when compared to a...
run by the Salvation Army
Salvation Army
The Salvation Army is a Protestant Christian church known for its thrift stores and charity work. It is an international movement that currently works in over a hundred countries....
in West Palm Beach, Florida
West Palm Beach, Florida
West Palm Beach, is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and is the most populous city in and county seat of Palm Beach County, the third most populous county in Florida with a 2010 population of 1,320,134. The city is also the oldest incorporated municipality in South Florida...
. He was released from the halfway house in July 1997, after serving a total of nine years of his 15-year sentence. He found work with an advertising firm.