Story Created: Jul 29, 2010 at 9:33 AM MDT
Story Updated: Jul 29, 2010 at 9:33 AM MDT
Cyndi Steele joined her husband's supporters Wednesday in federal court as Edgar Steele, 64, pleaded not guilty to four additional felonies.
She spent several minutes talking to her husband's public defender, Roger Peven, and to her husband's friends before leaving without speaking to reporters.
Edgar Steele's supporters contend the case against him is a fraud and that he has been targeted because of his legal work against the federal government.
They contend voice impersonation software was used to fabricate recordings of Steele discussing the murder plot with Larry Fairfax of Sagle, Idaho. Fairfax went to the FBI and secretly recorded Steele talking about the plot.
Fairfax is charged with planting a bomb under Cyndi Steele's car. Employees at a Coeur d'Alene shop found the bomb while performing an oil change on June 15.
Fairfax told law enforcement officers that he rigged the bomb so that it would not explode. He has pleaded not guilty to possession of an unregistered firearm and making a firearm in violation of the National Firearms Act, and remains in custody.
A federal grand jury indicted Steele on charges of using interstate commerce to commission murder for hire, tampering with a victim, use of explosive material to commit a federal felony and possession of a destructive device in relation to a crime of violence, according to federal court documents. The murder and tampering charges carry a maximum of 10 years in prison each; using an explosive carries a maximum of 20 years, and the final charge carries a minimum of 30 years in prison.
The victim-tampering charge stems from a phone call Steele made to his wife from the Kootenai County Jail, in which he urged her to tell authorities the voice on the recording of the murder-plot discussion does not belong to him.
"No matter what you hear, no matter what you think, no matter what you feel, you have to say the following: 'No, that is not my husband's voice,'" Steele said, according to court documents.
Steele has been in custody since a federal raid at his home near Sandpoint, Idaho, on July 11.
Steele defended the Aryan Nations in a civil lawsuit in 2000 that ultimately bankrupted the white supremacist group.
___
Information from: The Spokesman-Review
Most Popular
- BSU unveils new uniforms
- Check this out! Hot air balloon lands in Boise River
- Boise Marine killed was 'a true hero'
- Photo Gallery: Firefighting aircraft in action
- Wash. woman target of acid attack had just moved from Idaho
- Photos: Swimsuits and gowns at Miss Universe
- Three people killed in Idaho Fish and Game helicopter crash
- Nampa woman, repairman clash over bill
- Did son kill parents over $500 in rent money?
- Prosecutors: Teacher faked being teen for online sex chats
