Post office box links Porter to felon

By SUSAN HERENDEEN
sherendeen@modbee.com

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According to his friends, elderly rancher Frank Craig had a lot of complaints before he drowned in the Ceres Main Canal, and chief among them was the fact that he was not getting statements for investment accounts worth $2 million.

During a murder trial Friday in Stanislaus County Superior Court, a prosecutor called witnesses to show that former Hickman pastor Doug Porter had rented a post office box in November 2000, listing Milton Bridges as having access to the box.

Bridges, an inmate at Solano State Prison, shuffled into the courtroom with his hands cuffed and chains around his ankles, but he didn't have much of an explanation for the jury.

AT A GLANCE
- WHAT: The murder trial of Howard "Doug" Porter, 57, of La Grange
- THE ALLEGATIONS: Porter, pastor of Hickman Community Church for nearly two decades, is accused of embezzling $1.1 million from rancher Frank Craig, then killing the elderly man to cover his tracks. Craig, who was 85 when he drowned, wanted to use money inherited from a brother to build an agricultural museum; he enlisted Porter's help to get the job done. Authorities say Porter staged two vehicle crashes to cover his tracks, crippling Craig in a March 2002 crash in which Porter's truck slammed into a tree, then killing Craig in an April 2004 crash that sent Craig's truck into the Ceres Main Canal.
- FRIDAY'S ACTION: The jury heard about a post office box Porter opened, which could have been a repository for financial statements from Craig's accounts. Jurors also heard from contractors who did work at Porter's home and were paid with money from an account Craig set up to fund the museum.
- WHAT'S NEXT: The trial resumes Monday and is expected to stretch into late July or early August.
Past coverage: The Doug Porter case

The three-time felon who is serving time for robbery, burglary and assault with a semi-automatic firearm said he had no idea how the post office box was obtained.

He said he never had a key to the box.

And he said he had nothing to do with C & P Investments, a fund Porter set up after he gained control of Craig's finances, according to court records.

His only connection to Porter was through Bridges' son, Preston, who was a top-notch wrestler. Bridges, who lived in Waterford, said he persuaded the school board in Hughson to give Preston an interdistrict transfer so the boy could attend the school at which Porter had built a strong wrestling program.

Later, Bridges said, Porter told him he could have report cards sent to the post office box, a move that would give Bridges an address inside the school district.

"Doug's a good wrestling coach," Bridges said.

Porter provided with lone key

Next, Deputy District Attorney John R. Mayne called Tuolumne Postmaster Dennis Borrell to the witness stand. Borrell recalled issuing the box, and one key, to Porter.

The significance of the post office box may have been unclear to the jury, because they have not heard about the investment fund or Craig's complaints that he was not receiving statements from his accounts at A.G. Edwards & Sons Inc.

But jurors' curiosity may have been piqued, because they have already heard former church secretary Cathy Bergman recall the uncomfortable task of questioning her pastor shortly after Craig set up a $150,000 fund that was supposed to be seed money for an agricultural museum.

The elderly rancher inherited $2 million from a brother and thought the country preacher would help him build a museum to showcase a dozen tractors and other farm equipment Craig had collected over decades.

Craig and Porter formed a partnership in fall of 1999, when Craig made the church his beneficiary and named Porter the executor of his estate. Later, Craig expanded Porter's reach, giving him power over his finances and health care decisions.

By early 2000, Bergman was concerned because she had bookkeeping duties at the church but had not received statements for the museum foundation fund. After obtaining duplicates from the bank, Bergman found that Porter had been making personal purchases with museum money.

She told the court that Porter had admitted misappropriating money and intercepting bank statements at the church's post office box. The church wrote Craig a letter, blaming a clerical error, and Bergman turned bookkeeping duties related to the museum over to a board of directors set up by Porter.

The district attorney's office alleges that Porter's embezzlement continued until at least $1.1 million had been drained from the money Craig set aside for the museum. Porter, 57, of La Grange also is accused of staging two truck crashes, in 2002 and 2004, aimed at covering up his misappropriation.

The first crash crippled Craig, and the second one killed him.

Porter is charged with murder, attempted murder, as well as theft or embezzlement from an elder adult by a caretaker and elder abuse causing death. He has pleaded not guilty and has been held without bail since his arrest Nov. 27, 2006. He faces life in prison if convicted.

The museum was never more than a plan on paper.

Money went to personal needs

Other witnesses testified about purchases Porter made with money drawn from an account Craig set up to fund the museum, including a merchant who delivered a riding lawn mower and other equipment to Porter's home in La Grange and a plumber who did work on the Porter family compound.

The court also heard from several family members who run Hensley Paving of Waterford, which did about $5,000 in paving work at the church and nearly $30,000 in paving work at the Porter homes.

Lyle Hensley said his company did paving work around the church in 2000, followed by grading work in 2003, on a building pad where the museum would have been built. He said his firm awaited further instructions. He didn't think the museum would come to fruition any time soon.

"He told me the plans were in the county to be developed and it had went on for quite some time," Hensley said.

To comment, click on the link with this story at www.modbee.com. Bee staff writer Susan Herendeen can be reached at sherendeen@modbee.com or 578-2338.