Trial Begins For Texan In Oil-for-Food

Opening arguments will start today in the trial of the wealthy Texas oil tycoon accused of participating in kickback schemes with Iraqi officials to win oil contracts, marking the latest hearing in the U.N. oil-for-food scandal playing out in federal court.

The former chairman of the Houston-based Coastal Corporation, Oscar Wyatt, 83, faces up to 74 years in prison if convicted of charges of conspiracy, wire fraud, engaging in prohibited financial transactions with Iraq, and violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. He has pleaded not guilty on all charges. In court papers, Mr. Wyatt claims he was pinpointed because of his outspoken criticisms regarding government policies in Iraq. "Oscar Wyatt has shown time and again that he's an American patriot," his lawyer, Gerald Shargel, told the Associated Press last month. "He loves this country. He doesn't love this administration." The judge in the case, U.S. District Judge Denny Chin, ruled last month that evidence Mr. Wyatt's defense said unfairly portrayed him could still be presented at the trial, including diary entries from a former Iraqi state oil agency employee that suggest Mr. Wyatt provided inside information about America's 2003 invasion of Iraq. The allegations against Mr. Wyatt and others began following an independent investigation in 2005 that found that Saddam Hussein's government had pocketed $1.8 billion in total kickbacks between 1996 and 2003. To date, eight other defendants have either pleaded guilty or been convicted of criminal charges in the case, and there are six remaining individuals with pending criminal charges.