Ministries decries bugging of phone lines

The church is asking the courts to block any government wiretapping of telephones and fax machines.

The Tampa Tribune, April 1, 1999
By Michael Fechter

TAMPA - Government wiretaps violate the Constitutional rights of Greater Ministries International Church members and could breach attorney-client privilege, a church lawyer argued in court papers Wednesday.

The church wants an injunction against any government agency bugging its headquarters, its cellular telephones and its fax machines.

A federal grand jury issued a 20-count indictment against seven Greater Ministries officials, including founders Gerald and Betty Payne, on March 10. Conspiracy, money laundering and mail fraud are among the charges. Prosecutors say the group's money-doubling financial program is a Ponzi scheme in which money from newer investors is used to pay earlier investors.

An arraignment is scheduled for this afternoon.

Greater Ministries is certain about the wiretaps, said attorney Al Cunningham. A church member from Arizona was visiting someone in Tulsa, Okla., he said, and she faxed material to Greater Ministries' Tampa headquarters. The next day, federal agents knocked on the door where she was staying in Tulsa and asked to speak to her.

``There's only one way they could have found out about this lady,'' Cunningham said, ``and that's by intercepting a fax.''

And if the eavesdropping is that pervasive, it must be picking up confidential communication between Cunningham and his clients, he said.

Monte Richardson, spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office, declined to comment.

Law enforcement officials continue intercepting Greater Ministries' mail ``just because they have the power to do so'' and are harassing church members by confronting them and demanding records, Cunningham said.

``There's just a heavy-handedness of government in our lives that makes things very difficult,'' Cunningham said.