12-25-22
RE: Stan Fitzgerald publicly comments for the first time, over 22 years later, on the October 1999 sports memorabilia business fraud accusations from Stan’s Sports in Caldwell, New Jersey.
I interviewed Fitzgerald on Christmas Eve 2022.
Background : Stan Fitzgerald of Caldwell New Jersey is a highly decorated retired police detective who served from 1986 through 1999 at the Essex County Sheriffs Department in Newark , NJ. Fitzgerald was a driver for President Ronald Reagan in a June 1987 motorcade.
Link to articles and accommodations : https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10157523877439693&type=3
Link to photos and awards : https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10157523880974693&type=3
Fitzgerald retired in 1999 do to on-the-job injuries resulting from being struck by a car driven by a drug dealer and a PTS diagnosis
His assignments included : Detective Bureau of Narcotics , Federal DEA Task Force , Essex County Prosecutors Major Case Squad , Westnet Narcotics Task Force , Civil Process and Court Security. Fitzgerald had extensive training and experience in investigative procedures from State , Federal and NYPD agencies. Fitzgerald was a court qualified expert in investigative procedures and the affiant on dozens of search warrants.
In early 1992 Fitzgerald started a collectibles business called Stan the Man Sports Memorabilia later called Stan’s Sports. Fitzgerald paid athletes and celebrities to sign autographs in bulk that he later sold. Over the course of seven years he worked with over 200 famous sports and screen celebrities to directly obtain the signatures assuring their authenticity and documented the process. Some of the business deals made were with Joe Dimaggio , Ted Williams , Yogi Berra , Phil Rizzuto , Muhammad Ali, Terry Bradshaw , Mariano Rivera , Magic Johnson , Greg Maddux , Actors Charlton Heston and X-Files star Gillian Anderson , Musicians Meatloaf and Roger Daltery to name some. Significant amounts of monies were paid for the products sometimes as high as $40,000.00 for one deal
Fitzgerald drew controversy where on October 13th 1999 the FBI executed a search warrant at his New Jersey home where he operated a business then called Stan's Sports Memorabilia. The FBI accused Fitzgerald of knowingly obtaining fraudulent signatures from industry suppliers including material that was authenticated by a relative of Joe DiMaggio’s who was never charged with a crime. To be clear Dimaggio represented the items as being forensically reviewed and found to be authentic which were sold to Fitzgerald and he was not accused of a crime. Fitzgerald took and passed two polygraph exams that he was innocent of allegations.
Almost five years after the search warrant execution he was charged with crimes just several weeks from the statute of limitations expiring. Fitzgerald points out from his law enforcement background that search warrants are executed after a criminal investigation is completed, usually with an arrest warrant or substantial evidence a crime was committed. In this case one defendant in San Diego , being a Wayne Bray, claimed Fitzgerald had knowledge of the fraud that he was perpetrating. Fitzgerald was recorded on a call during a time where he suffered from PTS and only inferences were made in that conversation that were unclear to Fitzgerald that fraud was being committed but the government claimed Fitzgerald turned a blind eye. Fitzgerald points out that PTS makes it hard to focus on conversations. Fitzgerald states he did not know what defendant Bray was inferring and was distracted during the conversation not really paying attention.
Fitzgerald states that the FBI case agent was writing a book , later published, about this investigation and therefore he believes he was pressured into a plea deal so the agents book would be marketed better. "Clearly when an FBI agent is writing a book while still investigating the suspect who is to be included in same book that is a giant red flag against the integrity of the investigation" that should have been disclosed to the court at the time " said Fitzgerald.
The government used tax evasion charges of an amount around $20,000 , Twenty Thousand dollars to leverage the freedom of Fitzgerald’s family to plea guilty. Fitzgerald points out that his accountant Greg Tompkins made the 20,000.00 change on his tax returns so he assumed it was legal and that was a relatively small amount to be charged with a crime, "in fact most people get a bill in the mail for an amount such as that" said Fitzgerald.
Fitzgerald stated after five years of hell and hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees he was innocent but plead guilty simply so his family would not go to prison on tax related charges that were clearly being overcharged/exaggerated to force him to plea.
Fitzgerald points out that the FBI accused him of a massive fraud but after the DOJ ran paid national advertisements looking for victims , through industry newspapers , to be paid restitution the initial calculation was in the low twenty thousand dollars range. Fitzgerald states the low restitution indicates the government over-inflated the accusations on the alleged fraud dollar values to increase sentencing exposure as that was determined based on dollar amounts.
Fitzgerald stated the government told him to lie and say he paid for a beach condo with business money as opposed to his personal savings so they could seize the property. Banking records show the money came from personal funds not business. "Obviously they had the banking recordings" Fitzgerald said.
Fitzgerald states two different US attorney’s declined to prosecute him but the FBI case agent went to a low level environmental AUSA who went along with the case agent and book author to leverage his families freedom in exchange for his guilty plea.
Fitzgerald stated he worked with the FBI to assist them in arresting a school teacher who was selling automatic weapons and married to a corrupt police officer and then in a separate operation a white supremacist group selling weapons including a correction officer selling a hand grenade. Fitzgerald stated about his cooperation he was not involved in these groups but worked up the cases for the agents in an undercover capacity. Fitzgerald stated even though he risked his life and had a shotgun pointed at his head by the white supremacist the FBI case agent insisted on Fitzgerald serving a few months as opposed to probation which would be the norm based on the results of his assistance.
Fitzgerald states he has bank records, polygraphs and tape recordings to prove his innocence. Fitzgerald states he also has proof the FBI used the Patriot Act to illegally monitor his lawyer client privileged communications and their handling of this investigation was ordered to be investigated by OPR at the directive a sitting member of congress and that all proofs are secured in a safety deposit box with copies in his attorneys’ storage.
When asked why he never made these proofs available to the public , Fitzgerald stated “ twenty years ago no one would think the government would abuse their citizens like this and we just wanted to put this behind us so I plead guilty to what I was innocent of” Fitzgerald went on to say the sitting member of congress who ordered the OPR investigation was coincidentally hit by the media with a pseudo scandal shortly later and that he felt the agency had too much power for him to be some sort of whistleblower, “did not want to be a target the rest of my life for exposing them and still I am not going to do that now by putting out the evidence for same reason” said Fitzgerald
Asking the question so why even make this statement now ?,
Fitzgerald replied as follows: “ About two years ago I decided to get involved in politics and I want to use my skills to help candidates get into office who will start holding Government agencies and their agents accountable for their actions .While I am never going to run for office and have not tried to monetize the business of politics for personal gain, I was attacked with decades old accusations for successfully helping a congressional campaign in Georgia, so its time for a statement ”
“ I am good at what I do so in politics the nature is to mud sling to try to discredit the work someone is doing , but I think most people get that and do not care about accusations from over 20 years ago"
" I wanted the public to know that in addition to this “mud” being decades old it comes with polygraphs to show its actually bullshit not mud” Said Fitzgerald.
Fitzgerald used a quote from Herschel Walker made during the senate run off : "People who attack my past are like someone who is robbing a house I no longer live in”
Fitzgerald went on to say “ I do not care what you believe I was innocent of what I plead guilty to. Happens all the time in this country and more recently its proven in the public domain that federal law enforcement agencies are rogue and politicized. I can tell you they have been for decades , look at what happened to my family in 1999."
In closing Fitzgerald said “ This is the only statement I will make about what happened so long ago, I am not interested In reliving that hell or taking on goliath” If the media asks I will refer them to this statement link and that’s all I will say “ Look , I am financially secure and certainly could have stayed under the radar but I wanted to help fight for my country . Call me a patriot if you wish and that is exactly how you can find my website google “ Stan Fitzgerald Patriot “ or type in https://stan-fitzgerald.com/
In more recent years Fitzgerald was cleared by secret service to once meet President Bill Clinton and President Donald Trump on numerous occasions.
Contact : intel@vladlemets.com
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