Throughout his 15-month investigation of the Iran-contra affair, Independent Counsel Lawrence Walsh has been a figure of courtly stoicism. Amid the drama of last summer's congressional Iranscam hearings, the stern-faced 76-year-old prosecutor remained quietly in the background. Despite the court battle over the constitutionality of his appointment and the barbs of critics who said his probe was moving too slowly, he moved calmly ahead with his search for evidence. But when he appeared outside federal court in Washington last week, Walsh uncharacteristically allowed his thin lips to curl into a tight, satisfied smile. Finally, he could announce the fruits of his meticulous labor: a 23-count indictment that contained sweeping charges of criminal dealings at the White House.
The targets were Ronald Reagan's former National Security Adviser John Poindexter; fired NSC Aide Oliver North; and two arms dealers, former Air Force Major General Richard Secord and Iranian-born Businessman Albert Hakim. They were charged with conspiring to defraud the U.S. by establishing and concealing a plan for illegally supporting the Nicaraguan contras. The federal grand jury also charged all four defendants with theft of Government property for siphoning off more than $17 million in proceeds from U.S. arms sales to Iran, and with wire fraud resulting from the movement of the money through Swiss bank accounts. The three counts together carry maximum penalties of 20 years in prison and fines totaling as much as $750,000.
In addition, Poindexter and North were accused of trying to cover up their illicit actions by destroying and removing documents and making false statements. North was charged with lying to Attorney General Edwin Meese about NSC involvement in the diversion of funds to the contras and writing misleading letters to Congress denying that the NSC was supporting the contras. Former National Security Adviser Robert McFarlane pleaded guilty two weeks ago to misdemeanor charges for signing the letters; he may testify against North. Poindexter was accused of a peculiarly high-tech cover-up: he purged his NSC computer files of all messages relating to the contra supply operation.
North, who told Congress last summer that he and Poindexter were Iran- contra's designated "fall guys," bore the brunt of the indictment. Piled onto the conspiracy and obstruction charges were accusations that the Marine lieutenant colonel had embezzled $4,300 worth of traveler's checks and received an illegal gratuity by accepting a $13,800 home-security system from Secord.
North was also accused of conspiring to defraud the Internal Revenue Service by using the tax-exempt National Endowment for the Preservation of Liberty to solicit $3.2 million in contributions, which he used to buy lethal contra aid. NEPL President Carl ("Spitz") Channell and Public Relations Consultant Richard Miller pleaded guilty to the same charges last spring, and presumably will testify against North. On all the charges, North faces a possible sentence of 85 years in prison and a staggering $4 million in fines.