A day before deposed international press baron Conrad Black was scheduled to be arraigned in Chicago, a fellow defendant was a no-show in federal court for his own arraignment Wednesday.
Assistant U.S. Atty. Robert Kent said former Hollinger International Inc. Chief Financial Officer John A. Boultbee’s failure to appear before U.S. District Judge Amy St. Eve showed “an unfortunate disrespect for the court.”
Black and several associates, including Boultbee and Peter Atkinson, have been charged with looting $84 million from the company that owns the Chicago Sun-Times.
A lawyer for Boultbee left a voice-mail message with prosecutors explaining he could not appear because he “had other personal matters to attend to,” according to Kent.
“We have been in touch with a few attorneys, some who have said they represent [Boultbee], some who have said they don’t,” Kent said. “At this point, we have not gotten any indication that he intends to appear before this court.”
Kent, however, said the government would wait before starting extradition proceedings to give Boultbee a chance to reschedule. Besides, Kent noted extradition would take time, as paperwork must be processed through Washington and the Canadian government.
Fellow defendant Atkinson, who served as head of legal affairs for Hollinger and also was scheduled to appear in court Wednesday, had his hearing moved to 4:30 p.m. Thursday, when Black, Hollinger’s former chairman and chief executive, also is scheduled to appear.
Black last week in Toronto said the accusations of improper transactions and excessive perks alleged in the grand jury indictments were “absolute nonsense” and predicted “a complete vindication of the defendants, and exposure of their persecutors.”
Black, who gave up his Canadian citizenship to become a member of the British House of Lords, has twice delayed his arraignment while assembling a U.S. legal team to assist Toronto attorney Edward Greenspan.
Chicago’s Edward Genson and Marc Martin, currently representing lobbyist Lawrence Warner in the federal racketeering trial involving former Gov. George Ryan, signed on with Greenspan this week.
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Mark Kipnis, a former Hollinger attorney named in the indictments, entered a not guilty plea Tuesday.
Former Sun-Times Publisher F. David Radler, Black’s lieutenant, pleaded guilty to one count of fraud in September. He agreed to a 29-month prison term and to cooperate with federal prosecutors.
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