Article: GUILTY PLEA MADE IN DISPUTE OVER CLAMS.(News)

A Las Vegas businessman accused of trying to hire a hit man to harm a rival in a dispute over giant clams in Washington state pleaded guilty yesterday in U.S. District Court in Seattle to attempted extortion and conspiracy.

Nichols DeCourville, 68 ((age)), conspired to sell 33,000 pounds of contraband geoduck clams in violation of federal law, prosecutors said.

DeCourville also arranged to pay $5,000 for an attack that was supposed to leave a competitor with a broken leg and a broken arm and be ``delivered with a message'' that he stop doing business with Indians, prosecutors said. The attack on the broker was never carried out.

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