New Hampshire's Port Director Fights Witness Tampering Charges

 

The head of New Hampshire's port authority has pleaded not guilty to state charges of witness tampering and falsifying physical evidence, among other alleged offenses. 

Geno Marconi, 73, is head of New Hampshire’s Division of Ports and Harbors, which oversees the harbor at Portsmouth and the tidal section of the Piscataqua River. Among other facilities, the waterway is home to Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, one of the Navy's four nuclear-capable repair yards. 

Marconi stands accused of improperly obtaining motor vehicle records and giving them to an alleged co-conspirator, Bradley Joseph Cook, the chair of the division's advisory council. The documents were records for "N.L.," identified by New Hampshire public media as Neil Levesque, vice chairman of the Pease Development Authority (PDA), which oversees Marconi and the state ports division.

Marconi has also been charged with witness tampering (retaliation), falsifying physical evidence and obstructing government administration.

Cook, Marconi's colleague on the port advisory council, faces a separate charge of perjury. He allegedly made false statements to a grand jury about whether he had been in contact with Marconi about the "pier use permit of N.L. [Neil Levesque]." Prosecutors have declined to provide further details of the case for the time being. 

Marconi has been on leave from his post at the Division of Ports and Harbors since April. His wife, state supreme court justice Anna Hantz Marconi, stands accused of interfering in the investigation by allegedly asking Gov. Chris Sununu to intervene in her husband's case. 

Hantz Marconi faces one charge of "attempt to commit improper influence" for calling the governor to talk about the charges against Geno Marconi. According to prosecutors, she told Gov. Sununu that the investigation into her husband's activities was meritless and driven by petty, personal biases, and that it needed to be wrapped up quickly. Hantz Marconi is on leave from her post at the state's highest court and has said that she plans to fight the charge.

According to his official biography, Geno Marconi grew up on New Hampshire's working waterfront and has been employed at its seaports since 1975. He holds a 1600-Tonne Master license, and he captained tugs, small cruise ships and other vessels over the course of his career. He is a recipient of the International Association of Maritime and Port Executives' lifetime achievement award (2023), and served as chairman of New Hampshire's Advisory Committee on Marine Fisheries.