PUGalicious
01-03-2006, 09:01 AM
From MSNBC.com (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10692635/):
WASHINGTON - Lobbyist Jack Abramoff will plead guilty to federal charges in Washington and Miami, clearing the way for him to cooperate in a massive government investigation of influence peddling involving members of Congress, his lawyer and the Justice Department said Tuesday.
As part of the deal, prosecutors were filing conspiracy, fraud and tax evasion charges against the embattled lobbyist, a Justice Department official said.
Abramoff was scheduled to appear at a hearing in U.S. District Court here later Tuesday, said department spokesman Bryan Sierra. Abramoff was expected to plead guilty to three charges as part of his agreement.
Abramoff was then to plead guilty to two criminal charges in Florida stemming from a 2000 purchase of a fleet of gambling boats, said Neal Sonnett, his attorney there.
Abramoff will plead guilty to two of the six charges in a federal indictment, Sonnett said.
U.S. District Judge Paul Huck has scheduled a telephone status conference for later Tuesday. Four other charges in Florida will remain pending.
The continuing saga of Abramoff’s legal problems has caused anxiety at high levels in Washington, in both the Republican and Democratic parties.
White House spokesman Scott McClellan said Tuesday he did not know whether Abramoff ever met President Bush. But when asked at the White House about this, the spokesman said that “what he is reportedly acknowledged doing is unacceptable and outrageous.”
“If laws were broken, he must be held to account for what he did,” McClellan said.
Wider probe of lawmakers
Abramoff's cooperation is expected to be a boon to an ongoing Justice Department investigation of congressional corruption involving tribal contributions.
Prosecutors investigated whether Abramoff defrauded his Indian tribal clients of millions of dollars and used improper influence on members of Congress. The prosecutors are looking at building criminal cases against up to 20 lawmakers of both parties and their staff members.
In a five-year span ending in early 2004, tribes represented by the lobbyist contributed millions of dollars in casino income to congressional campaigns, often routing the money through political action committees for conservative lawmakers who opposed gambling.
Abramoff also provided trips, sports skybox fundraisers, golf fees, frequent meals, entertainment and jobs for lawmakers' relatives and aides.
Gambling fleet investigation
Abramoff and a former partner, Adam Kidan, were indicted in Miami in August on charges of conspiracy and fraud for allegedly lying about their assets to help secure financing to purchase the fleet.
Pressure had been intensifying on Abramoff to strike a deal with prosecutors since Kidan pleaded guilty in December to fraud and conspiracy in connection with the deal in 2000 to acquire the SunCruz fleet in Florida.
Abramoff and Kidan were charged with concocting a fake $23 million wire transfer to make it appear they were putting their own money into SunCruz. Two lenders agreed to provide $60 million in financing for the purchase based on that false wire transfer, according to prosecutors.
Kidan and Abramoff bought SunCruz from Konstantinos "Gus" Boulis, who was slain in 2001 in a gangland-style hit in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Investigators say Boulis and Kidan were fighting for control of SunCruz; Kidan has denied any involvement in Boulis' death.
Three men were arrested in September on murder charges in Boulis' killing and are awaiting trial.
Michael Scanlon, another former Abramoff associate, pleaded guilty in November in a separate case in Washington.
Scanlon said he helped Abramoff and Kidan buy SunCruz by persuading Rep. Bob Ney, an Ohio Republican, to insert comments into the Congressional Record that were "calculated to pressure the then-owner to sell on terms favorable" to Abramoff and Kidan.
NBC's Pete Williams and Mark Potter as well as The Associated Press contributed to this report.
URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10692635/
WASHINGTON - Lobbyist Jack Abramoff will plead guilty to federal charges in Washington and Miami, clearing the way for him to cooperate in a massive government investigation of influence peddling involving members of Congress, his lawyer and the Justice Department said Tuesday.
As part of the deal, prosecutors were filing conspiracy, fraud and tax evasion charges against the embattled lobbyist, a Justice Department official said.
Abramoff was scheduled to appear at a hearing in U.S. District Court here later Tuesday, said department spokesman Bryan Sierra. Abramoff was expected to plead guilty to three charges as part of his agreement.
Abramoff was then to plead guilty to two criminal charges in Florida stemming from a 2000 purchase of a fleet of gambling boats, said Neal Sonnett, his attorney there.
Abramoff will plead guilty to two of the six charges in a federal indictment, Sonnett said.
U.S. District Judge Paul Huck has scheduled a telephone status conference for later Tuesday. Four other charges in Florida will remain pending.
The continuing saga of Abramoff’s legal problems has caused anxiety at high levels in Washington, in both the Republican and Democratic parties.
White House spokesman Scott McClellan said Tuesday he did not know whether Abramoff ever met President Bush. But when asked at the White House about this, the spokesman said that “what he is reportedly acknowledged doing is unacceptable and outrageous.”
“If laws were broken, he must be held to account for what he did,” McClellan said.
Wider probe of lawmakers
Abramoff's cooperation is expected to be a boon to an ongoing Justice Department investigation of congressional corruption involving tribal contributions.
Prosecutors investigated whether Abramoff defrauded his Indian tribal clients of millions of dollars and used improper influence on members of Congress. The prosecutors are looking at building criminal cases against up to 20 lawmakers of both parties and their staff members.
In a five-year span ending in early 2004, tribes represented by the lobbyist contributed millions of dollars in casino income to congressional campaigns, often routing the money through political action committees for conservative lawmakers who opposed gambling.
Abramoff also provided trips, sports skybox fundraisers, golf fees, frequent meals, entertainment and jobs for lawmakers' relatives and aides.
Gambling fleet investigation
Abramoff and a former partner, Adam Kidan, were indicted in Miami in August on charges of conspiracy and fraud for allegedly lying about their assets to help secure financing to purchase the fleet.
Pressure had been intensifying on Abramoff to strike a deal with prosecutors since Kidan pleaded guilty in December to fraud and conspiracy in connection with the deal in 2000 to acquire the SunCruz fleet in Florida.
Abramoff and Kidan were charged with concocting a fake $23 million wire transfer to make it appear they were putting their own money into SunCruz. Two lenders agreed to provide $60 million in financing for the purchase based on that false wire transfer, according to prosecutors.
Kidan and Abramoff bought SunCruz from Konstantinos "Gus" Boulis, who was slain in 2001 in a gangland-style hit in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Investigators say Boulis and Kidan were fighting for control of SunCruz; Kidan has denied any involvement in Boulis' death.
Three men were arrested in September on murder charges in Boulis' killing and are awaiting trial.
Michael Scanlon, another former Abramoff associate, pleaded guilty in November in a separate case in Washington.
Scanlon said he helped Abramoff and Kidan buy SunCruz by persuading Rep. Bob Ney, an Ohio Republican, to insert comments into the Congressional Record that were "calculated to pressure the then-owner to sell on terms favorable" to Abramoff and Kidan.
NBC's Pete Williams and Mark Potter as well as The Associated Press contributed to this report.
URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10692635/