By O’Ryan Johnson
The Boston Herald
BOSTON — Convicted killer Edward Corliss was ordered held on an additional $4 million bail yesterday after he was arraigned on witness intimidation charges in a bizarre plot to murder several people who were prepared to testify against him - including his wife.
Assistant Suffolk District Attorney Patrick Haggan said bail is symbolic since Corliss, 64, is already under lock and key on charges he gunned down a Jamaica Plain store clerk. Yesterday, Corliss pleaded not guilty to four counts of witness intimidation.
Haggan said within days of his arrest, Corliss befriended a fellow inmate who was due to be released soon. Haggan said Corliss wanted the man to kill his wife, who actually did die recently of natural causes, as well as two other witnesses.
Corliss drew the would-be-killer maps and offered him a $2 million share of a future armored car heist to carry out the assassinations, according to Haggan. Afterward, Corliss planned to flee the country.
Corliss is charged with the Dec. 26, 2009, robbery and murder of Surendra Dangol, 39, a Tedeschi’s Food Shop store clerk in Jamaica Plain who planned to bring his wife and child to America from Nepal. At the time, Corliss was on parole for killing a store clerk during a 1971 robbery in Salisbury.
During his jailhouse chats with the other inmates, Corliss allegedly admitted he killed Dangol to “leave no witnesses,” Haggan said.
Soon after the inmate was released, he went to police and told them of the alleged plot, according to Haggan. Using the fake name “James Lucas” as well as code words, cops posing as the inmate exchanged four or five letters with Corliss, according to Haggan.
Corliss’ lawyer John Hayes said he believes the alleged would-be assassin concocted the story to strike a bargain with prosecutors.
“Not a word of what he said can be trusted,” Hayes said. “This person is looking to curry favor with the commonwealth.”
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