◆ SpookStack

‘does not have the "pure" background one might reasonably expect in an FBI special agent. But it was precisely because. of his unsavory background, his ability to lie convincingly, = his understanding of the corrupt mind and his ability to imagine and execute a grand charade on the scale of Abscam _ that Weinberg was enlisted for the investigation. Further, Weinberg gave considerable credibility to the entire under- cover operation; persons dealing with Weinberg in the context : of Abscam could check him out with other sources and be wrongly assured that they were not dealing with government “agents. Weinberg had a track record that no legitimate government agent could provide or falsify. Moreover, the government was not required to find Weinberg "reliable", as would be the case if he were an informant whose information was used to obtain a search warrant. As indicated elsewhere in this decision, section © VI-A-6, supra, the basic reliability for the investigation, | and ultimately for the prosecutions, was guaranteed by . having the crimes committed on camera under circumstances guided by Agent Amoroso and closely supervised by Agent Good. Defendant Murphy would analogize Weinberg's prior "front fee scam technique" to his claimed solicitations of gifts and loans from subjects of the investigation.” But even assuming that Weinberg in Abscam solicited gifts Sere