Forty-First Court Session

In today’s court session, a bank employee testified that Marc Schaffel, one of Jackson’s employees, had withdrawn a total of $1.5 million from an account that belonged to Neverland—an account that only Michael Jackson and he were allowed to withdraw from—twice in early 2003.

Beverly Wagner continued that Schaffel had withdrawn the first time on April 2, 2003: a check for $1 million, and a week later another check for $500,000 from the same account.

The prosecution claims that Michael Jackson had instructed Schaffel to pay this money as the company’s wages for producing the second part of “Living with Michael Jackson” to Frank Casino, another one of his employees.

The prosecution alleges that Jackson and his employees had forced the complainant’s family to make positive statements about Michael Jackson.

At the end, Wagner said it could not be determined whether Schaffel withdrew from the account on Michael Jackson’s orders, or whether Michael Jackson personally knew about Schaffel’s withdrawals from that account.

Craig Bonner, a police detective, was the second witness in today’s session. He testified about the recorded phone calls made in Neverland that had taken place in the days before and after the documentary “Living with Michael Jackson” aired on television between Jackson’s employees and the complainant’s family.

Bonner said these phone calls were related to the day before the documentary was broadcast on television.

Previously, the complainant’s mother had testified that during a phone call with Michael Jackson, he told her that her children’s lives were in danger, and then asked them to attend a press conference in Miami.

The prosecution alleges that this incident was part of a conspiracy plan to imprison the complainant’s family in Neverland.

In answering questions from Robert Sanger, the defense attorney, Bonner revealed that determining whether these phone calls were made with Michael Jackson’s knowledge or not was impossible.

The defense attorneys are planning to ask Judge Melville to dismiss the current charges against Michael due to insufficient evidence.

Michael may also appear in the witness stand to defend himself. The defense attorneys have not yet stated their final decision on this matter.

Source: Yahoo News