The city of Los Angeles moved Thursday to abandon its high-profile lawsuit against PricewaterhouseCoopers in what amounts to a stunning defeat for City Atty. Mike Feuer, who had tried to blame the consulting firm for the massive overbilling debacle at the Department of Water and Power.

City attorney spokesman Rob Wilcox said that key witnesses in the city’s case — namely David Wright, the former head of DWP, and Paul Paradis, an attorney who formerly consulted for Feuer’s office — refused to testify in depositions, impairing the city’s ability to proceed with its lawsuit.

Wright and Paradis also were named in a recent FBI search warrant, in which investigators were seeking information about potential crimes, including bribery and financial kickbacks.

“Unable to overcome the current circumstances, the city is dismissing its case,” Wilcox said.

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