Black Called on Trump to Save Face With Investors

The fallen press baron, Conrad Black, stage-managed a seemingly spontaneous show of support from Donald Trump to fend off angry investors at an annual meeting when his Hollinger media empire began to unravel, a jury heard today.

At Lord Black's racketeering trial in Chicago, the prosecution produced an email sent by the former Telegraph owner to Mr Trump a day before Hollinger's 2003 shareholders' meeting.

"Dear Donald," began Lord Black. "Could I ask a rather esoteric favor?"

He continued: "Some of the (investing) institutions are engaging in an insurrection and I plan on a forceful rebuttal ... If you were able to make a cameo appearance and put in a supportive word, I'm sure it would have an impact."

The flamboyant New York property billionaire duly turned up and delivered a fulsome tribute to Lord Black's "tremendous" management. Lord Black was so pleased that he jokily invited Mr Trump's girlfriend, the Slovenian model, Melania Knauss, to join Hollinger's board of directors.

The meeting was held in the early stages of investor discontent about payments of $60m (£30m) to Lord Black and his senior colleagues which, according to the US government, were fraudulent transactions to bankroll lavish lifestyles.

In court, Hollinger's former head of investor relations, Paul Healy, has testified that he tried to flag up concerns about his boss's behavior to non-executive directors. But Mr Healy came under pressure from defense lawyers who showed the jury a series of supportive messages, which he sent to Lord Black in 2002 and 2003.

"I and my Christian Scientist-practitioner mother are praying for you and for Hollinger at this time," he wrote in one message. "I am so impressed by your fortitude and I will support any tack you take."

Under questioning by the defense counsel, Edward Genson, Mr Healy acknowledged that he later accepted a job at a hedge fund run by Lord Black's eventual ouster, Richard Breeden, who headed a committee which probed Hollinger's finances.

"I stopped supporting Conrad when I found out what he'd done," Mr Healy told the jury.

Lord Black, 62, is on trial alongside three former colleagues - Jack Boutlbee, 63, Peter Atkinson, 60, and Mark Kipnis, 59. The former media mogul is fighting 17 charges of racketeering, fraud, tax evasion, money laundering and obstruction of justice.

The prosecution has indicated that its case is drawing to an end. The government's last few witnesses are expected to include Hollinger's institutional shareholders who are viewed as the victims of Lord Black's alleged crimes.