Judge Drops BCCI Bribery Charges Against Clifford

Charges against former Defense Secretary Clark M. Clifford, accused of bribery in the BCCI banking scandal, were dropped Tuesday because of Clifford’s failing health.

Judge John Bradley granted a motion submitted earlier in November by Manhattan Dist. Atty. Robert Morgenthau that the charges be dropped.

Clifford, 86, had been indicted on state charges that he took bribes in exchange for helping the Bank of Credit & Commerce International hide its illegal ownership of banks in the United States, including First American Bankshares Inc., the largest bank holding company in Washington.

BCCI, a virtually unregulated foreign bank, was shut down two years ago amid worldwide charges of money laundering and fraud.

Clifford, an adviser to several presidents and defense secretary under President Lyndon B. Johnson, underwent coronary bypass surgery in March and suffered a heart attack in May.

He had been indicted last year along with his protege and former law partner, Robert Altman, who was acquitted by a state jury in August. Clifford’s case had been separated from Altman’s because of his failing health, and lawyers predicted that he would never stand trial.

“I think as time goes on, this extraordinary experience will fade,” Clifford said. “If I may say so, I think my record in government will endure.”