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February 12, 2008

Oster trial: Contractor turns for advice after shakedown

The state fire marshal told a jury today that when an alleged ally of the Lincoln town administrator was shaking down a contractor, the contractor came to him for advice.

At the time, Frank Sylvester was not the state fire marshal; he was the chief of the Lime Rock Fire Department in Lincoln.

Sylvester testified today in the trial of former Lincoln town administrator Jonathan F. Oster, who faces conspiracy and bribery charges for allegedly working with Robert Picerno to sell a piece of town-owned land on the cheap in exchange for bribes.

Under direct examination by Assistant Attorney General Bethany Macktaz, Sylvester corroborated earlier testimony by the contractor, Robert Gelfuso, about Gelfuso’s coming to him after his partner had been shaken down by Picerno for more than $4,700 at the site of a job the company was working on.

Sylvester told the jury that he brought Gelfuso to meet then-state Rep. John Barr II. Sylvester said after conversations with Barr, he urged Gelfuso to contact the state police.

Gelfuso would later cooperate with the authorities by providing evidence and recording conversations with Picerno.

Sylvester also said he would see Picerno around town hall in the months after Oster’s election in November, 2000, boasting of his roll on Oster’s transition team and talking about personnel changes he wanted to make in town hall.

-- projo.com staff writer Brandie M. Jefferson, with reports from Journal staff writer John Hill

Posted by Brandie Jefferson  at 11:58 AM | Permalink

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