TV cameramen fixed their lenses on the entrance of downtown San Jose, Calif.’s federal courthouse Friday morning, a sure sign that someone famous, perhaps infamous, was about to have a bad day. This time it was only Bryan Wagner, whose sole notoriety stems from his role as a lowly private investigator in the Hewlett-Packard pretexting scandal.
Wagner pleaded guilty to conspiracy, wire fraud and related charges in front of U.S. District Judge Jeremy Fogel, making him the first to strike a deal with federal prosecutors. The agreement comes with a minimum of two years in prison, but Wagner can appeal anything beyond that, and his plea may lead to leniency when he is sentenced in June.
