Posted on 09/06/2001 5:49:39 AM PDT by harpseal
Justice for Ted.
God bless him and his family.
Phil Dragoo
Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA - 07/10/2001 02:14 GMT
NEW YORK--(ENTERTAINMENT WIRE)--Sept. 10, 2001--In the early morning hours of December 3, 1999 in Monte Carlo, flames roared through the luxurious penthouse of one of the world's richest men, Edmond Safra, who at the time was huddled with one of his nurses in a steel-reinforced ``safe room,'' terrified of the masked intruders he believed had broken into his home. Two hours later, when firefighters finally penetrated the residence, the billionaire and his nurse were found dead of asphyxiation. Later the same day in rural Holmes, New York, 29-year old pediatric nurse and mother of three Heidi Maher learned her husband, Ted, was involved in Safra's murder when her sister-in-law, Tammy, called to relay the news, who had seen the story earlier on television. Ted, also a nurse, was on a private-duty assignment in Monaco with Safra at the time of the fire. ``I knew Ted was the only nurse on duty that night,'' Heidi frantically recalls. After a frenzied telephone search for her husband, a New York-based Safra employee informed Heidi that not only was Ted alive, but a hero. According to this staff member, Ted had warned Safra and the other nurse, Vivian Torrente, about the intruders, helped them into the safe room, handed Torrente a cell phone, then escaped to the lobby to summon help. ``She told me he was attacked by the intruders and that he'd suffered knife wounds,'' Heidi adds. The next morning Heidi and her brother flew to France with tickets purchased by Safra's widow, Lily Safra. ``That's when things got a little bit weird,'' Heidi says. On their way to the hospital to see Ted, Heidi and her brother were re-routed to the police station. Her husband, Monaco police informed her, was no hero. In fact, Ted Mather was being held responsible for the deaths. Heidi was told that Ted had signed a confession stating he had been depressed and, desperate to look good to his boss, had concocted the whole intruder-scenario, hoping to ``rescue'' Safra. Ted, she was warned, had even stabbed himself and set the fire to make it look real. Ted was now facing charges of arson, ``with intent to harm,'' a crime that carries a maximum life sentence in Monaco. Heidi was later interrogated and advised that a large knife was found in her husband's possession. ``That's impossible!'' Heidi cried. At that point, she took a break outside when suddenly she and her brother were grabbed, forced into a small car with three unidentified people, and taken to their hotel, where the people proceeded to tear through their luggage and steal their passports. Three exhausting days later, Heidi's brother retrieved the passports when police relayed that there were no ``intruders.'' (Heidi's brother confirmed to Glamour the authenticity of Heidi's account in Monaco.) Heidi didn't believe the story then and remains today that her husband is innocent. She disputes the validity of the confession, pointing out that it was written in French (a language Ted does not speak or read). He only signed the confession, she says, because he was shown her passport and told she would not be allowed to return home unless he did so. However, Patrice Davost, Monaco's director of judiciary services, insists that Ted was interrogated in English by a bilingual officer, and that his confession was not coerced. Today, famous attorney, Michael Griffith, represents Ted, with a trial date tentatively set for this spring. He is supported by many, including New York Representatives Sue Kelly (R-NY) and Benjamin A. Gilman (R-NY). Heidi remains supportive to Ted and declares, ``I love him, and I know that he did not do this.''
Contact: GLAMOUR Karen Bailey, 212/286-5521 or Amy Peck, 212/286-4924
Stay safe - Stay well - Stay armed -Yorktoen
Stay well - Stay safe - Stay armed - Yorktown
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