'Clark Rockefeller' must wait for his gold coins
Arizona Coin Collector
http://www.boston.com/news/local/breaking_news/2008/11/gerhr_must_wait.html
The Boston Globe -- Local News Updates
'Clark Rockefeller' must wait for his gold coins
November 6, 2008 11:26 AM
By John R. Ellement, Globe Staff
By John R. Ellement, Globe Staff
Christian Karl Gerhartsreiter must wait a little
while longer to regain control of $280,000 in
gold coins that the FBI confiscated during his
arrest earlier this year on charges he kidnapped
his daughter after a messy divorce.
Defense attorney Jeffrey Denner said today in
Suffolk Superior Court that he was close to an
agreement with prosecutors for the return of the
coins, which were seized during Gerhartsreiter's
arrest in Baltimore after an international
manhunt.
"Essentially, it's his money and the government
has no right to it,'" Denner said outside court
after a hearing.
It has not been alleged that the gold is
connected to any crime, and Gerhartsreiter can
use the gold to pay his defense lawyers. Denner
said that prosecutors want to document the coins
in case there is a need to introduce them at
trial.
Earlier this week Denner joined Gerhartsreiter's
defense team, which includes Boston attorney
Stephen Hrones. Gerhartsreiter is a former
German national who used a strong of aliases,
including Clark Rockefeller.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's office has
labeled him a "person of interest'' in the
case of a California couple who vanished in
the 1980s when Gerhartsreiter was renting an
apartment in their guesthouse.
Under the Rockefeller name, Gerhartsreiter
married Sandra Boss, and the couple had a
daughter, Reigh, seven years ago. He is
accused of kidnapping the girl during a
visit supervised by a social worker in
Boston on July 27.
Gerhartsreiter's former wife is also laying
a claim to the gold coins. Through her
attorneys, Boss is asking a Suffolk Probate
and Family Court judge to rule that
Gerhartsreiter violated a custody agreement
when he allegedly kidnapped their daughter
and took her on the run for five days.
Boss wants 120 of the coins to recoup $80,000
in expenses, according to court filings
reviewed by the Globe. A probate hearing
has been set for Nov. 12.
Gerhartsreiter did not appear today in
Suffolk Superior Court. He is being held
without bail after pleading not guilty to
custodial kidnapping, giving police a false
name, and assault and battery with a
dangerous weapon.
..