A sordid Hollywood tale

last updated 8 January 2015

Los Angeles

Anthony Pellicano, once known as the private detective to the stars, tried to arrange the murder of one of his former operatives, federal prosecutors said this week. Pellicano has already been indicted for running illegal background checks and wiretaps on his clients’ adversaries. In the latest charge, prosecutors say he paid ex-con Alexander Proctor to intimidate a Los Angeles Times reporter by placing a dead fish with a rose in its mouth on her car. After Proctor was arrested for the incident in 2002, Pellicano tried to have him rubbed out in a mob hit, to keep him from testifying, prosecutors said. Pellicano, who has pleaded not guilty, reportedly worked for such Hollywood notables as Sylvester Stallone, Chris Rock, and Paramount chief Brad Grey.