Lobbyist Set to Plead Guilty in Florida

WASHINGTON, Jan. 4 - A day after he pleaded guilty to three felony counts here, Mr. Abramoff, a once prominent Republican lobbyist, instantly became the star witness in a sweeping federal investigation into public corruption in Washington when he pleaded guilty to fraud, tax evasion and conspiracy to bribe public officials as part of a settlement with federal prosecutors in a case stemming from his purchase of a casino boat line in 2000. The inquiry could involve as many as a dozen lawmakers, people involved in the case said.

Mr. Abramoff, 46, accepted a recommended reduced prison sentence of about 10 years in exchange for testifying against former associates in the influence-peddling case. The agreement also requires Mr. Abramoff to pay more than $26 million in tax penalties and restitution to former clients, although he has told associates he is broke. The corruption inquiry involving Mr. Abramoff, potentially one of the most explosive in Congressional history, has expanded in recent months to encompass dozens of political operatives, including former Congressional aides and lobbyists suspected of arranging bribes in exchange for legislative work, participants in the case said. His testimony, coupled with that of Michael Scanlon, a former Abramoff business associate who pleaded guilty in November, reaches into the executive and legislative branches and appears to be drawing an ever-tighter ring of evidence around the former House Republican majority leader, Tom DeLay, and other senior Congressional Republicans.

Standing hunched in a dark suit in front of a Federal District Court judge, his eyes downcast as the plea deal was announced, Mr. Abramoff bore little resemblance to the brash operative who in hundreds of e-mails messages obtained by prosecutors once boasted about his financial kickbacks, referring to them as a "gimme five" scheme.

Mr. Abramoff confessed to making "a multitude of mistakes" during a decade or so of lobbying work. In a soft, grainy voice, he pleaded guilty to defrauding at least four Indian tribes of tens of millions of dollars, enticing government officials with bribes and evading taxes."All of my remaining days, I will feel tremendous sadness and regret for my conduct and for what I have done," Mr. Abramoff said. Emerging from the courthouse into a light drizzle wearing a black fedora, he slipped into a waiting car and was driven away. Mr. DeLay, who has taken in thousands in campaign donations from Mr. Abramoff and accompanied the lobbyist on a lavish golf trip to Scotland in 2000, has denied any wrongdoing. Richard Cullen, a former United States attorney representing Mr. DeLay, said his client "is confident that when the Department of Justice completes its investigation and gets to the bottom of this that they will conclude that he did nothing wrong."

Court documents filed Tuesday gave a snapshot of what Mr. Abramoff has been telling investigators during their plea negotiations over the last year and a half. In one instance cited in court documents, Mr. Abramoff directed favors to a senior DeLay staff member -referred to in documents as "Staffer A," but identified by lawyers as Tony C. Rudy, now a Republican lobbyist. Those favors came in the form of payments to Mr. Rudy's wife, Lisa. Mr. Abramoff paid $50,000 to Lisa Rudy through a charity organization in exchange for her husband's "agreement to perform a series of official acts," the plea agreement said.

Also mentioned in the plea agreement was a "Representative No. 1" who, along with members of his staff, accepted gifts, travel and free meals at Mr. Abramoff's restaurant, signatures, in exchange for legislative help, including inserting a comment into the Congressional Record designed to help Mr. Abramoff with a business deal. Representative Bob Ney, Republican of Ohio, was identified as this figure after court documents were filed in connection with Mr. Scanlon's plea deal. Although Mr. Ney did not deny his association with Mr. Abramoff and Mr. Scanlon on Tuesday, he insisted, as he has in the past, that he was tricked by the two men into doing work on behalf of their lobbying clients.

Mr. Abramoff helped funnel more than $1.5 million in campaign donations to hundreds of elected officials, more than half of them Republican, since 2000, according to analyses of his work.

As Assistant Attorney General Alice Fisher put it on Tuesday, Mr. Abramoff "went far beyond lawful lobbying." How much time Mr. Abramoff will spend in prison will be determined later, after he has fulfilled most of his obligation to help investigators. He has been in talks with prosecutors for some 18 months. According to people involved in the case, all of whom spoke on condition of anonymity because the broader investigation is continuing, Mr. Abramoff at times offered guidance to investigators as they pursued other targets.

According to participants in the case, he has shared information about David Safavian, a former Bush administration official indicted last year, and Tim Flanigan, the Tyco executive who withdrew his nomination as the second-in-command at the Justice Department after his ties to Mr. Abramoff came into question. Mr. Abramoff told Tyco "that he was negotiating on their behalf " to try to save them money "when in fact he was simply setting a high price on services that he controlled and from which he would profit."

"With most cases, the plea is the end, but with Abramoff, the plea is just the beginning," said an F.B.I, official who spoke on condition of anonymity, adding, "This one has legs."

BBC NEWS, 14.12.05.

Date: 2015-12-11; view: 1709