Saints allegedly bugged opposing locker rooms

[akhhorus]

Link

he U.S. Attorney's Office in the Eastern District of Louisiana was told Friday that New Orleans Saints general manager Mickey Loomis had an electronic device in his Superdome suite that had been secretly re-wired to enable him to eavesdrop on visiting coaching staffs for nearly three NFL seasons, "Outside the Lines" has learned.

Sources familiar with Saints game-day operations told "Outside the Lines" that Loomis, who faces an eight-game suspension from the NFL for his role in the recent bounty scandal, had the ability to secretly listen for most of the 2002 season, his first as general manager of the Saints, and all of the 2003 and 2004 seasons. The sources spoke with "Outside the Lines" under the condition of anonymity because of fear of reprisals from members of the Saints organization.

Jim Letten, the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Louisiana, acknowledged being told of the allegations Friday and has briefed the FBI in New Orleans about Loomis' alleged activity, according to sources. If proven, the allegations could be both a violation of NFL rules and potentially a federal crime, according to legal sources. The federal Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA) of 1986 prohibits any person from intercepting communications from another person using an electronic or mechanical device.

This really isn't good, the Saints could be in deep trouble if true.

[shally]

Originally Posted by akhhorus

Link



This really isn't good, the Saints could be in deep trouble if true.

i think what they really mean is that Loomis has cameras in the cheerleader locker rooms...

[RedskinsDave]

If this is true, Loomis can expect a lifetime ban and the team will be losing draft picks.

[FunBunch5]

No matter that they won a SB, this team is showing why they will always be the Aints.

[shally]

Originally Posted by FunBunch5

No matter that they won a SB, this team is showing why they will always be the Aints.

their problem is that they are, apparently, not as good cheaters as Bellicheat's Boys... it aint a crime until you get caught

[BIGREDSKINSFAN1963]

The saints have a lot of problems off the field.the bounty scandal,the owner just demoted his grandaughter from running the team,they also had that vicodin scandal a few years back,and they can't get brees resigned. if these allgations are true,loomis will get a lifetime ban! the saints should just fire payton and start over!

[cal_junior]

Originally Posted by shally

i think what they really mean is that Loomis has cameras in the cheerleader locker rooms...

And that's just being an effective GM, really.

[justinskins]

If true, this would be worse than Spygate for sure.

However, this is a convenient time to sling mud at the Saints because it's likely to stick. I'd rather wait and see what comes of it.

[shally]

Originally Posted by BIGREDSKINSFAN1963

The saints have a lot of problems off the field.the bounty scandal,the owner just demoted his grandaughter from running the team,they also had that vicodin scandal a few years back,and they can't get brees resigned. if these allgations are true,loomis will get a lifetime ban! the saints should just fire payton and start over!

problem is that before Payton, they had exactly 1 playoff win in their ENTIRE history.. he is still very very popular in New Orleans

[BIGREDSKINSFAN1963]

Originally Posted by shally

problem is that before Payton, they had exactly 1 playoff win in their ENTIRE history.. he is still very very popular in New Orleans

I Know he is popular,but would you want a guy who has endorsed bounties and tied to the biggest on field scandal in the 21st century coaching your team?

[Farmer Ted]

It would be awesome if Goodell decided to give Haslett a lifetime ban, too. We could really win out on this one.

[AustinSkin]

This story is coming from un-named sources from ESPN. Pretty serious accusations. How would you be able to produce evidence that this actually happened in pre-Katrina New Orleans?

If it did happen, it's egregious, and the appropriate punishment is warranted. But it will be interesting to see if anyone can produce tangible evidence to back these allegations, instead of hearsay.

[shally]

Originally Posted by Farmer Ted

It would be awesome if Goodell decided to give Haslett a lifetime ban, too. We could really win out on this one.

for now, I would still say YES

Originally Posted by AustinSkin

This story is coming from un-named sources from ESPN. Pretty serious accusations. How would you be able to produce evidence that this actually happened in pre-Katrina New Orleans?

If it did happen, it's egregious, and the appropriate punishment is warranted. But it will be interesting to see if anyone can produce tangible evidence to back these allegations, instead of hearsay.

Good point, but this kind of thing is more substantiated by guys coming forward , than by specific evidence, I think.. We havent reached the tipping point yet

[Moe]

This morning I heard that the previous GM had installed this system but it was to allow him to listen to the Saints staff only. The allegation is that it was switched over under Loomis in '02 to allow broader access but as others have pointed out, the Saints have stated that this isn't true and as of now, no evidence exists that this did happen. FWIW this happened from '02-'04 and was under Haslett and not Payton.

[LadyNRedskinsfan]

The Saints are an absolute mess. Good thing we get em week one.