Wilson released on bond, with many restrictions

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Eugene Wilson Sr. in 2004

Updated: January 20, 2012 10:02PM

A Merrillville man accused of stealing $1.6 million from his investors will be released on bond, but he has a long list of conditions he must follow, a federal judge ruled Friday afternoon.

U.S. Judge Paul Cherry ordered that Eugene W. Wilson Sr.’s sister post one of her real estate properties as bond and also ordered Wilson’s attorney, Scott King, to look into posting the house that Wilson lives in as part of the bond. The house is owned by his son, Eugene W. Wilson Jr., an NFL defensive player who spent about five years with the New England Patriots.

Wilson Sr., who pleaded not guilty to two counts each of wire fraud and money structuring during the hearing, will have to wear an electronic monitoring bracelet and won’t be able to leave the house at all, Cherry ordered.

He also can’t open any bank account of any kind anywhere, Cherry said, or use the few bank accounts he has still active. He also was banned from writing checks, using a computer, getting on the Internet or talking to anyone who might end up as a witness or victim in the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Gary Bell had requested that Wilson Sr. be detained pending his trial, arguing that he could have access to a large amount of money that would help him flee. FBI Special Agent Charles Pawpalko testified at the detention hearing and arraignment at the U.S. District Court in Hammond that bank records show that three victims wired Wilson Sr. the money, with two of them having written records that the money was supposed to stay in an escrow account.

However, the records then show that Wilson Sr. wired the money to banks in Luxembourg and Liechtenstein. The money sent to Luxembourg was then sent to Switzerland but the government is still trying to track down exactly where it went, he said. It is also still trying to find the money sent to Liechtenstein, he said.

Pawpalko also testified that travel records show that Wilson went to Europe about 13 times between 2006 and 2008, the time frame of the charges, and visited places such as France, Spain, England and also the Grand Cayman Islands. Pawpalko said the government believes there are more victims.

However, King argued that Wilson Sr. was trying to create an investing company and that in today’s market, anyone doing so needs to make business trips to Europe. King also pointed out that there’s no evidence Wilson has left the country since 2008.

A trial has been set for March 19.