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Woman pleads guilty after lengthy obsession with financier

E-mail|Link|Comments () November 24, 2009 02:44 PM

(David L. Ryan/Globe Staff/file 2002)

Thomas H. Lee in his Boston office in 2002.

By Jonathan Saltzman, Globe Staff

A federal judge said today he expects to sentence a woman to five years probation and defer a lengthy prison term, giving her one last chance after she admitted threatening to kill a well-known local financier as part of a Fatal Attraction-like obsession spanning more than 15 years.

Laura Goldman (Globe file photo 1995)

The saga of Laura Goldman, 51, and her fixation with financier Thomas H. Lee began with a brief romantic affair in 1993. A decade ago Goldman was convicted twice in federal court in New York of harassment and extortion aimed at Lee, falsely accusing the former Lincoln resident of rape after he rebuffed her romantic advances, according to court records and discussions today in court.

The most recent allegations against Goldman stemmed from a indictment handed up in November 2002. She was accused of leaving a message threatening to kill Lee, his son, and other relatives if he did not pay for her mental health treatment, referring to the money "war reparations" for their brief relationship, according to court records. Goldman had fled to Israel in 2000 to avoid other charges related to harassment and was extradited to Boston to face the charges in April.

As a part of the plea deal filed today in US District Court in Boston, Goldman pleaded guilty to two counts of attempted extortion. The deal includes strict conditions of probation that would go so far as to bar her from going to certain states because it would be too close to Lee and his family. Formal sentencing has been scheduled for next month, but Judge Richard G. Stearns said today from the bench was he was inclined to accept the agreement.

The plea deal would "give her a chance to move on with her life, recreate life … but give her one chance," said Assistant US Attorney John T. McNeil.

Defense attorney Oscar Cruz acknowledged that this was a good deal for his client.

"She's being given a probationary sentence and it’s a good result under the circumstance," Cruz said. "Having said that, this agreement is certainly not going to be a simple one" because of the probation restrictions.

If Goldman successfully completes probation, 16 counts in the criminal complain will be dismissed. If she violates her probation, she will face a prison term of 6 1/2 to 8 years. Goldman has been in federal detention since her extradition earlier this year.