Louis Bronstein — Direct/Cross
118 linesJUDGE WHEELER: The state may call its next witness.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: Special Agent Bronstein.
JUDGE WHEELER: Mr. Bronstein, please.
JUDGE WHEELER: Good afternoon.
JUDGE WHEELER: Come to the witness stand, please.
JUDGE WHEELER: Before you have a seat, we're going to swear you in. Please raise your right hand and respond to the clerk.
COURT CLERK: Do you solemnly swear or affirm that the testimony you shall give shall be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
JUDGE WHEELER: Thank you. Please have a seat, sir.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: Please introduce yourself and spell your name.
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Good afternoon. My name is Special Agent Louis Bronstein. L-O-U-I-S B-R-O-N-S-T-E-I-N.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: How are you employed, sir?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: I'm a special agent with the FBI.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: What about back in April 20th, 2016?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: At that time, I was a special agent with the FBI.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: All right. Did you participate in a surveillance operation in Miami at a restaurant called Dolce Vita?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Yes.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: All right. I want to ask you a few questions. Like, what type of place is that?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: It was a small restaurant in kind of a strip mall type setup. It served pizza and gelato, that kind of stuff.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: All right. Do you know where it is exactly?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: North of Miami Beach.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: What was the objective of the operation that day?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: If I remember correctly, I was tasked with surveilling Charlie Adelson.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: Okay. And was Charlie Adelson going to be in the restaurant meeting with someone else?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Yes.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: And who was that?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Katherine Magbanua.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: Okay. And were you supposed to — when you said you were supposed to surveil them, what equipment were you using to do that?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Right. As I arrived in vicinity of that restaurant, I met with another agent in the parking lot and was given an audio-video recording device.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: All right. And was the recording device in proper working order that day?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Yes.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: And were you able to capture some images as well as some audio at the neighboring table?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Yes.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: Okay. Okay, so can you kind of describe the setup of where you were in relation to Mr. Adelson and Ms. Magbanua?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Yes. When I entered the restaurant, I saw that they were seated towards the back, about as far back as you can go into the restaurant, so the north end of the structure.
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: And I saw that there was a vacant table where one side is like a booth-type seating up against the wall and then chairs on the other side, so I sat as close as I could get to them without looking suspicious, I guess you could say.
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Yes, it's in like a laptop bag, messenger bag type of thing. Audio — it's particularly difficult to hear.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: Was there any movement associated with you positioning yourselves in those first minutes or positioning the microphone closer to the subjects?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Oh, certainly.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: Okay. And do you know about how long you were in there?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Roughly one hour.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: And do you see the person in the courtroom today who met with Charlie Adelson and whose conversation you attempted to record on that day?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Yes, I do.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: Could you point that person out and describe what she's wearing?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Seated, wearing glasses and a white shirt.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: Okay. Okay, we've got two of those.
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: In between the two attorneys.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: All right, thank you. Let the record reflect the witness has identified the defendant.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: Have you had an opportunity to review the recording that came from your efforts?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Yes.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: Okay. And it was a noisy restaurant, right?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: That's correct.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: A lot of background noise?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Yes.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: That wasn't something that you were in control of?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: That's correct.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: Okay. You went in there. Were you alone or were you with somebody else?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Another individual came into the restaurant.
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: And sat with me.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: Okay. And was that person also an undercover?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Yes.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: All right. And was that person also equipped with recording?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Yes.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: All right. And have you had an opportunity to review State's Exhibit 114?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Yes.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: Use your initials on the thumb drive?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: They are.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: Okay. And is this a fair and accurate copy of the recording that you and the other agent were able to capture that day in the restaurant?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Yes.
JUDGE WHEELER: All right. It'll be admitted subject to the previous objections made on the record.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: Yes, Your Honor, and assuming they're the originals.
JUDGE WHEELER: Okay.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: So the recording device that was encapsulated in the laptop bag you were carrying — is that a high-tech, high-quality recording device?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Yes.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: And it contains multiple, like an array of microphones that try to capture sound from different directions?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Yes.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: Okay, so could you overhear the conversation that was occurring between Mr. Adelson and Ms. Magbanua?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: I could overhear that a conversation was taking place. Due to the background noise, I could not discern what was exactly being said, except for one particular moment where it sounded like the air handler for the climate control for the building just stopped for a brief moment and there was a substantially smaller amount of background noise.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: All right, and you were able to hear the words that were said at that time?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Yes.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: And what were those words?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Something to the effect of, "And then she turned," and it was a fragment of a sentence that I made note of in an FBI Form 302.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: All right, and who was the speaker of that fragment of sentence?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Charlie Adelson.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: All right. Are you able to tell the jury whether, from your perspective, whether one speaker or the other was louder between Mr. Adelson and Ms. Magbanua?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: I think Charlie Adelson was louder.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: At any time during the time that you were seated next to them, did anyone like get up and storm out of the restaurant?
MS. CAPPLEMAN: Either of Mr. Adelson or Ms. Magbanua?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Yes, if I remember correctly, Mr. Adelson did.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: He got up and stormed out? And would that be on the recording?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: It's possible.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: Okay. During the time that they were seated having a conversation, did the two of them seem to be mutually engaged in conversation, or did it seem like only one party was speaking?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: No, they seemed to be engaged with one another.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: Okay. Based on body language?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Okay.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: And then it's your recollection that he left first and then she left afterwards?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: I would have to see the video to be certain of that.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: Okay, so would the video be the best evidence of their departure?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Yes.
MS. CAPPLEMAN: Okay. One moment, please. No further questions.
JUDGE WHEELER: Cross-examination?
MR. DECOSTE: Likewise. Now, 2016 — you had been with the FBI for a while, right?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: I've been sworn in as an agent at the beginning of 2015, in January.
MR. DECOSTE: Now, if you could explain to the jury how the Department of Justice is over your agency and sort of the breakdown of that.
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Well, briefly, the Federal Bureau of Investigation is a component of the Department of Justice, and we serve as the investigative arm, if you will.
MR. DECOSTE: All right. Now, let's talk about the Department of Justice policy when it comes to things like recordings and reports.
MR. DECOSTE: If you, as an agent, are speaking to somebody who is in custody, what is the Department of Justice — I'll refer to it as DOJ — what's DOJ's policy when dealing with in-custody people? You have to record that, right?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: I would have to have the regulation in front of me to speak to it, but generally speaking, that is the protocol.
MR. DECOSTE: All right. Now, if a recording for some reason is not done, you do a report like you just talked about, a 302, right?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Yes.
MR. DECOSTE: This is DOJ policy that this stuff is documented, right?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Yes.
MR. DECOSTE: Let's now turn to 2016, Katherine Magbanua. You talked a little bit about what you saw.
MR. DECOSTE: Would you agree with me that nothing stood out to you with her demeanor as you saw her from across the restaurant at the table in Dolce Vita?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Uh, my impression was that — uh, she was engaged in a conversation with Charlie Adelson. That was my overall assessment, if you will.
MR. DECOSTE: And that's the extent of your assessment?
LOUIS BRONSTEIN: Yes.
MR. DECOSTE: All right. One second, I'm going to check with co-counsel. ... All set, thank you.
JUDGE WHEELER: Redirect? We can excuse the witness? All right, thank you, sir. Have a good day.