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Jackson Pals Probed for Threats
Did Michael Jackson's goons go Godfather on his young accuser?
That's the allegation that surfaced Wednesday in a Los Angeles Times report that said "several" of Jackson's associates could be indicted for supposedly trying to intimidate the family of the teen boy who has accused the former King of Pop of child molestation.
Quoting an unnamed source close to the case, the Times says that the Jackson lackeys could ultimately be charged with conspiracy and obstruction of justice.
A spokesperson for Santa Barbara District Attorney Tom Sneddon declined to comment on the report Wednesday, citing a court-imposed gag order on the case.
But a New York attorney named Joseph Tacopina tells the newspaper "there's been a lot of speculation" that two of his clients, Vincent Amen and Frank Tyson, would be indicted by the grand jury probing Jackson's case for allegedly threatening witnesses.
Tacopina, who asserts any such allegations are "patently false," says that both twentysomething men have so far refused to appear before the grand jury.
"They've been invited, and we declined," Tacopina tells the Times. "We're sitting tight."
Tyson, Jackson's former personal assistant, has been accused of threatening to kill the younger brother of Jackson's accuser if the boy told authorities that Jackson had served the youngster alcohol, according to Tacopina.
The Jackson File
E! Online tracks all the latest developments.
Amen, who worked for Jackson's production company, is being investigated for supposedly holding the boy's family at Neverland Ranch against the family's will, the lawyer says.
Tacopina tells the Times that it was the boys' mother who made the accusations.
"I know the evidence and I know the accuser," he says in the newspaper. "I'll have no problem taking up the issue of her credibility if and when I'm asked to do so."
According to the Times, the D.A. is looking to use the allegations against Tyson and Amen to show why it took so long for the boy to come forward and to explain why his family told welfare investigators last year that no hanky-panky had occurred between the then 12-year-old cancer survivor and the international pop star.
Jackson is charged with seven counts of child molestation and two counts of administering an intoxicating agent to a minor. He has pleaded innocent to all counts and remains free on $3 million bail.
The alleged victim appeared before the grand jury last month at an undisclosed location.
The members of the grand jury, whose identities remain under wraps, have been hearing testimony for 13 days. They are expected to conclude their hearings this week.This story gets wierder and wierder.
Did Michael Jackson's goons go Godfather on his young accuser?
That's the allegation that surfaced Wednesday in a Los Angeles Times report that said "several" of Jackson's associates could be indicted for supposedly trying to intimidate the family of the teen boy who has accused the former King of Pop of child molestation.
Quoting an unnamed source close to the case, the Times says that the Jackson lackeys could ultimately be charged with conspiracy and obstruction of justice.
A spokesperson for Santa Barbara District Attorney Tom Sneddon declined to comment on the report Wednesday, citing a court-imposed gag order on the case.
But a New York attorney named Joseph Tacopina tells the newspaper "there's been a lot of speculation" that two of his clients, Vincent Amen and Frank Tyson, would be indicted by the grand jury probing Jackson's case for allegedly threatening witnesses.
Tacopina, who asserts any such allegations are "patently false," says that both twentysomething men have so far refused to appear before the grand jury.
"They've been invited, and we declined," Tacopina tells the Times. "We're sitting tight."
Tyson, Jackson's former personal assistant, has been accused of threatening to kill the younger brother of Jackson's accuser if the boy told authorities that Jackson had served the youngster alcohol, according to Tacopina.
The Jackson File
E! Online tracks all the latest developments.
Amen, who worked for Jackson's production company, is being investigated for supposedly holding the boy's family at Neverland Ranch against the family's will, the lawyer says.
Tacopina tells the Times that it was the boys' mother who made the accusations.
"I know the evidence and I know the accuser," he says in the newspaper. "I'll have no problem taking up the issue of her credibility if and when I'm asked to do so."
According to the Times, the D.A. is looking to use the allegations against Tyson and Amen to show why it took so long for the boy to come forward and to explain why his family told welfare investigators last year that no hanky-panky had occurred between the then 12-year-old cancer survivor and the international pop star.
Jackson is charged with seven counts of child molestation and two counts of administering an intoxicating agent to a minor. He has pleaded innocent to all counts and remains free on $3 million bail.
The alleged victim appeared before the grand jury last month at an undisclosed location.
The members of the grand jury, whose identities remain under wraps, have been hearing testimony for 13 days. They are expected to conclude their hearings this week.This story gets wierder and wierder.
