Niger Forgeries, Rome, and Sismi disinfo artist "Birch Tree". This will only be of interest to a few. But to those who know about the Sismi/Pio Pompa apartment in Rome with the files on the journalists and authorities investigating the provenance of the Niger forgeries and the rendition of Abu Omar, the Italian "journalist"/propagandist/disinformation agent working on the payroll of the Italian service Sismi, Libero's Renato Farina, a.k.a. Sismi codename "Birch Tree," (Betula), and all the Sismi Keystone Cops efforts to cover up the Italian role in the Niger forgeries and Italian leadership's complicity in the CIA's rendition of cleric Abu Omar to Egypt, perhaps of interest. (Since I was one of the journalists whose work Farina/Birch Tree was employed by Sismi to try to put out disinformation on, I naturally find it of interest, as well as the evidence including transcripts below of his tapped phone calls with his Sismi handler Pio Pompa as well as the receipts of his being on Sismi's payroll for about 30,000 Euros.) What was Sismi/Farina's strategy? To blame the Niger forgeries on France. From a memo to journalists tonight from Milan prosecutor Armando Spataro, who is leading the investigation into the rendition of Abu Omar (below the fold):

November/12 hearing

Today the prosecutors questioned two Italian journalists, Claudio ANTONELLI (a young journalist who writes, still now, for the newspaper LIBERO) and Renato FARINA, former Deputy Director of the same newspaper. During the investigations, the two journalists were charged as responsible of the aiding and abetting crime with Pio POMPA, a senior officer of SISMi. At the end of investigations, ANTONELLI - on the request of the prosecutors - was acquited by the judge. According to the Italian system and to a special procedure (that gives the possibility to obtain a great discount of the penalty), FARINA agreed with the prosecutors a six months prison penalty (with the possibility to avoid the prison). Instead POMPA is one of the 33 defendants in the trial.

This is the above mentioned charge of aiding and abetting crime for POMPA (and FARINA):

“the offence provided for and punisched by the arts. 81 cpv, 110, 378 of the criminal code, because, after the execution of the abduction to the detriment of the Egyptian citizen Nasr Osama Mustafa Hassan alias Abu Omar, with serveral actions that are executive of the same criminal scheme, they helped Mancini Marco and other SISMI officials to avoid the investigations of the Authority; in particular, POMPA entrusted the journalist Renato FARINA (used as a stable source for the SISMI, with epithet “Birch-Source” to get in touch with the Public Prosecutor in Milan, the diretor of the investigations in the above-mentioned kidnapping, feigning a purely journalistic interest in an interview on the event, actually to make specific questions (suggested by himsel to the journalist) in order to evaluate the level of information of the investigators about the involvment of the SISMI in the event, as well as to turn in the wrong way the investigations of the office of the Public Prosecutor by giving him false information (also in this case suggested to the journalist by POMPA) about alleged organizational responsibility in the abduction of the magistrate dr. Stefano DAMBRUOSO (Public Prosecutor in Milan and director of the inquiry on the kidnapping until his tranfer outside the magistracy in Spring 2004) and of the staff of the Digos of Milan; POMPA, through FARINA and the journalist ANTONELLI (who reported to FARINA), sought illictly to obtain news, also in the Court of Justice of Milan about the progress of the investigations of the Public Prosecutors as well as suggested to other journalists with whom he was in close contact the publication of articles intended to bear out the responsibility of dr. DAMBRUOSO and of the DIGOS of Milan in the organisation of the kidnapping;

FARINA, asked, under the instructions of POMPA, the above-mentiond interview with the Public Prosecutor of Milan, which he carried out on 22.5.06 for the above-mentioned purpose and drew up a specific report - sento to POMPA- about the content of the interview; in addition, he sought illicitly to otain news, also in the Court of Justice of Milan and through the collegue Claudio ANTONELLI, from sources unknown for the time being, about the progress of the investigations of the Public Prosecutors, news which FARINA sistematically communicated to POMPA;

FARINA, in addition, for the above-mentioned aim, informed POMPA also about the physical displacemenst of the Public Prosecutor (displacements he knew about), including meetings for investigative aims which the Public Prosecutor held with the officer of the DIGOS in charge of the inquiries, on Sunday 21.5.06, in the Police Headquaters of Milan;

For POMPA with the additional aggravating factor in accordance with the art. 61 n. 9 criminal code, because he committed the fact in violation the duties pertaning to his office as a public official in the SISMI;

The offence was commited by Pompa in Rome, between May ad June 2006; in particular, also in date 22.5.06 (date of the meeting between the journalist Renato Farina and Claudio Antonelli with the Public Prosecutor of Milan); the offence was committed by Farina, in Milan, in the same period, in particular, also in date 22.5.06 (date of his meeting with the Public Prosecutor of Milan)”.

I want to remember what I wrote in some previous message: the investigations revealed the existence of an office (an apartment in Rome city centre) with links to SISMI, used for “secret operations”. The manager of this secret centre, Pio POMPA, was a close associate of Mr Pollari. In this apartment, following a search ordered by an official mandate, the Police and the Prosecutors seized many reports on Italian and foreign judges and prosecutors, on Italian important politicians, on journalists etc. and other papers also on the Abu Omar case and on Niggergate. The Rome Prosecution Office is leading an investigation into this illegal filing process.

During the investigations, the telephone conversations wiretapped on Farina and Pompa’s numbers (also on telephones installed in the SISMi apartment in Rome, where Pompa stayed), relating to the latter period of inquiries (May/2006 onwards), gave us the evidence on the Pompa’s role. The conversations demonstrated:

a. an attempt to manipulate the prosecutor’s investigative strategy, which Pio POMPA conducted in continuous contact with the SISMI Director, exploiting his close relationship with the reporter FARINA;

b. The attempt to provide conflicting accounts of the events under investigation, through contacts with reporters from other papers;

c. The intention to launch a series of “counter moves” through contacts with many other reporters, who have allegedly received favours of an “extra iuris ordinem” (I sent some news on this incredible point in one previous update).

So, questioning FARINA and ANTONELLI, the prosecutors had today the possibility to reconstructi this part of the story.

One of the most interesting part of the declarations of FARINA and ANTONELLI was about a meeting that they had, on their request, on may/22, 2006 with the two prosecutors (namely myself and my collegue Pomarici), when they tried to obtain informations on the investigations. It should be noted that, having been alerted by Digos as to the contents of the previous telephone conversations, the Prosecutors had ordered that the interview be recorded in full with hidden devices (bugs on my table): the formal transcript has been added to the acquired documents.

On 22.5.06 at 12:32 a call from FARINA was tapped on POMPA’s mobile phone, in which he told POMPA he had managed to arrange the meeting with D.A. Spataro through his fellow reporter ANTONELLI: the two agreed to speak later to decide on the questions to ask the PROSECUTOR.

Thereafter, POMPA told Gen. POLLARI about the reporter’s imminent meeting with the Prosecutor (it is odd that, when speaking with the Director of the Agency, POMPA uses the codename “BETULLA” – Birch - in clear reference to the reporter FARINA)

In the following conversation FARINA tells POMPA that the meeting has shifted slightly, and they agree on the issues to put before the PROSECUTOR so as to garner information and impressions to pass on to SISMi.

After the meeting, FARINA tells POMPA about the contents of the conversation that had taken place from 17.30 in Dr Spataro’s office between the two magistrates (myself and Pomarici), FARINA, and the young Libero reporter, Claudio ANTONELLI. Renato FARINA tells POMPA he has sent him a memo he drafted together with ANTONELLI. Pio POMPA then calls Director POLLARI and tells him what FARINA said.

We seized the meeting’s report in the Sismi’s apartment in Rome city center.

It should also be noted that on 19.5.2006:

- with two calls at 11:20 and 11:28 FARINA told POMPA he had managed to secure (from the Commanding officer of the carabinieri in Bergamo, col. Benedetto Lauretti, former Chief of the Counterterrorism branch of ROS Carabinieri in Milan) pages 46-62 of a report on Abu Omar and repeated that the ROS Carabinieri were “pissed off with Digos” (Digos is the skilled group of the State Police in counterterrorism investigations) and were spreading suspicious rumours on joint responsibility of the Milan Prosecution Office (on the other collegue who leaded the investigations till april/2004). FARINA agreed with POMPA to send him the documents in his possession, i.e. the full report mentioned above;

- At 11:30, POMPA referred to Director POLLARI the news he received from FARINA “basically, the ROS is laying the blame thickly on Digos”. Gen. POLLARI told POMPA to keep him constantly updated.

Today ANTONELLI admitted he went to Bergamo where he received by col. Lauretti the report on Abu Omar that he gave to FARINA. FARINA admitted he gave the paper to POMPA. We seized the Carabinieri’s report in the Sismi apartment in center Rome.

Other telephone conversations revealed attempts to acquire documents pertaining to the investigation unlawfully, as well as actually following, even physically, the moves of the District Attorney office in order to forestall its investigative leads between Pio POMPA and the reporter for the “Libero” daily, Renato FARINA:

Telephone call; dated 19.05.06 at 17.52:

FARINA (to POMPA): yes, well, another thing: today Spataro went away on holiday and comes back Sunday night…and he took his computer with him…well try and get some interviews ready, put some papers together, right?

... omissis…

Telephone call; dated 21.05.06 at 21.04:

POMPA: hello

FARINA: It’s me, Renato

POMPA: hi Renè

FARINA: well then .. the thing is running late because they want to have more… they want to work on it better even if it’s confirmed; at 19:00 tonight Spataro was at the Police station, he went there for a meeting with Megale, head of antiterrorism at Digos..

..omissis..

FARINA: he went there especially as he’s not working today… (it was Sunday) he asked to speak with him

…omissis…

FARINA …according to my very reliable source…they’re working on it, I think they’re trying to establish what is politically viable and what isn’t

POMPA Yes, but..

FARINA : right

POMPA: …Megale is important

FARINA:Anyhow, he went over at 19:00, he was in the office, he saw him, said hello, ok?

POMPA.: he went over then

FARINA: he went to the police station, and saw Megale

POMPA. : oh, ok

FARINA All right

POMPA: Thank Renè, ciao.

Antonelli admitted he saw me casually when I stayed, that Sunday, with Megale on the gate of the Police Station and he communicated the news to Farina, who admitted he called Pompa. We didn’t find the evidence Antonelli lied.

Of course we questioned the two journalist on many other specifics facts and wiretapped conversations, but it would be too long to synthesize every question and answer. If someone is interested I will be able to send the official statements of the hearings (they are not secret).

Anyway, Antonelli confirmed he didn’t know that his Deputy Director of the newspaper, Renato Farina, was closed to SISMi and was named “BETULLA Source”. ANTONELLI gave him any news he obtained (he worked very often in Milan Justice Palace) only because he was a simple and young journalist .

FARINA admitted he choosed to sign with name “BETULLA” the receipts of the expenses reimburments the SISMi gave him (the total amount was, according to his declarations, about 20.000 - 30.000 euro. He received the last payment on the 2006 Easter period). We seized one of those receipts with “Betulla” signature in via Nazionale in Rome. But FARINA told the judge he didn’t know that Sismi called him “Betulla source”!! He didn’t consider himself a Sismi source: he helped the SISMi because he was absolutely convinced of POLLARI’s innocence. POLLARI introduced him to POMPA, “his shadow” . He esteemed POLLARI, a catholic man (as Farina too) and POLLARI told him, many times, to be against any illegal method in fighting terrorism.

At last, on Pollari’s lawyer question, FARINA said he met (in Rome, in summer 2002 or summer 2003) admiral Capra, an important member of the US National Security Agency, who stayed in Rome and Capra told him that Condoleezza Rice didn’t like POLLARI as Sismi’s directors and asked to Berlusconi to remove him. Subsequently, Berlusconi seemed to confirm this circumstance, with a nod, when FARINA spoke with me.

FARINA, in 2007, was struck off the professional journalist register, after a disciplinary process, by National Council of Italian Journalists In the last spring he was elected member of Italian Parliament (Camera dei Deputati) as candidate of the Berlusconi’s party, the Unione della Libertà

Besides:

- as I wrote in the last update, the Constitutional Court set the date of March 10, 2009 in order to start discussing and decide on the issue of conflicts raised by Prodi’s and Berlusconi’s Governments against Milan prosecutors and judges on alleged violations of State secrecy.

The next hearing will be on december/10 (so, there will be a suspension for one month) because, according to our procedural code, we have to wait for the answers by the premier Berlusconi on the questions that the Judge sent him on the State secret opposed by two witnesses (see updates nn. 13 and 14). The dead line for these answers is on december/3.

Probably, on december/10, we will question the last for/five witnesses, all members or former members of the SISMi.

We didn't receive any news on our request - sent to american and egyptian authorities - to question other witnesses, who stay in Usa or Egypt (included Abu Omar).

The last: final numbers

Till this moment, the Prosecutors questioned 84 witnesses and renounced to interrogate 22 witnesses more (because their reports or declarations statements during the investigation have been accepted as evidence by the Judge without any oppositions by the lawyers) .

Besides, as I wrote you, the Judge accepted about 320 written papers, reports, official documents, declarations as evidence and very often the lawyers agreed it.

Many thanks for your attention.

Armando Spataro

Man, everybody in Italy must be wiretapped. How do they ever sort it all out?

Posted by Laura at November 12, 2008 07:46 PM