Former Conforte lawyer who testified against him suspended

The former lawyer who once represented fugitive brothel operator Joe Conforte has been suspended from practicing law in Nevada.

Peter A. Perry was ordered temporarily suspended by the Nevada Supreme Court this week because of his felony convictions stemming from the Conforte Mustang Ranch case filed by the Internal Revenue Service.

Perry pleaded to reduced charges in that case in trade for an agreement to testify against others including Conforte, who is reportedly living in South America and Italy as a fugitive.

Perry was sentenced to six months in a community center and three years supervised release on one count of wire fraud.

Perry testified that it was Conforte, through him, who controlled the company which bought back Mustang Ranch from the IRS after it was seized in a bankruptcy proceeding several years ago. Perry testified that Conforte continued to collect profits from the brothel and, in fact, owned it until it was seized and shut down this past year.

The IRS has since closed Mustang, probably the best known legal brothel in the United States, and is now trying to work with the Bureau of Land Management to turn it into a center for wild horse and burro information, adoptions and history.

In October, the Brazilian supreme court ruled Conforte could not be extradicted to the United States to stand trial on racketeering and other charges. The Associated Press reported that Conforte had apparently been arrested on a warrant and later released after leaving the country. The Brazilian court decision ruled that the statute of limitations had been exceeded, and therefore no action could be taken.