[Mb-civic] Abramoff Pleads Guilty to 3 Counts - Washington Post

[William Swiggard]

Abramoff Pleads Guilty to 3 Counts
Lobbyist to Testify About Lawmakers In Corruption Probe

By Susan Schmidt and James V. Grimaldi
Washington Post Staff Writers
Wednesday, January 4, 2006; A01

Jack Abramoff, the once-powerful lobbyist at the center of a 
wide-ranging public corruption investigation, pleaded guilty yesterday 
to fraud, tax evasion and conspiracy to bribe public officials in a deal 
that requires him to provide evidence about members of Congress.

The plea deal could have enormous legal and political consequences for 
the lawmakers on whom Abramoff lavished luxury trips, skybox 
fundraisers, campaign contributions, jobs for their spouses, and meals 
at Signatures, the lobbyist's upscale restaurant.

In court papers, prosecutors refer to only one congressman: Rep. Robert 
W. Ney (R-Ohio). But Abramoff, who built a political alliance with House 
Republicans, including former majority leader Tom DeLay of Texas, has 
agreed to provide information and testimony about half a dozen House and 
Senate members, officials familiar with the inquiry said. He also is to 
provide evidence about congressional staffers, Interior Department 
workers and other executive branch officials, and other lobbyists.

"The corruption scheme with Mr. Abramoff is very extensive," Alice S. 
Fisher, head of the Justice Department's criminal division, said at a 
news conference with other high-ranking officials of the Internal 
Revenue Service and the FBI. "We're going to follow this wherever it goes."

Fisher declined to identify the officials under scrutiny. "We name 
people in indictments," she said, adding: "We are moving very quickly."

Among the allegations in the court documents is that Abramoff arranged 
for payments totaling $50,000 for the wife of an unnamed congressional 
staffer in return for the staffer's help in killing an Internet gambling 
measure. The Washington Post has previously reported that Tony Rudy, a 
former top aide to DeLay, worked with Abramoff to kill such a bill in 
2000 before going to work for Abramoff.

Abramoff's appearance in U.S. District Court came nearly two years after 
his lobbying practices gained public notice because of the enormous 
payments -- eventually tallied at $82 million -- that he and a public 
relations partner received from casino-rich Indian tribes. Yesterday, he 
admitted defrauding four of those tribal clients out of millions of 
dollars. He also pleaded guilty to evading taxes, to conspiring to bribe 
lawmakers, and to conspiring to induce former Capitol Hill staffers to 
violate the one-year ban on lobbying their former bosses.

Under terms of his plea agreement, Abramoff can expect to receive a 
prison sentence of 9 1/2 to 11 years, and he is required to make 
restitution of $26.7 million to the IRS and to the Indian tribes he 
defrauded. Today he is to plead guilty to fraud and conspiracy counts in 
a related case in Florida involving his purchase of a casino cruise line.

Standing before U.S. District Judge Ellen Segal Huvelle in Washington 
yesterday, Abramoff looked sheepish and sad. "Your Honor, words will not 
be able to ever express how sorry I am for this, and I have profound 
regret and sorrow for the multitude of mistakes and harm I have caused," 
he said softly. "All of my remaining days, I will feel tremendous 
sadness and regret for my conduct and for what I have done. I only hope 
that I can merit forgiveness from the Almighty and from those I have 
wronged or caused to suffer."

Abramoff has been in extensive discussions with government lawyers for 
months leading up to yesterday's plea.

Ney, chairman of the House Administration Committee, is among the first 
of those expected to feel the fallout. In the court documents -- which 
identify him only as "Representative #1" -- Ney is accused of meeting 
with one of Abramoff's clients in Russia in 2003 to "influence the 
process for obtaining a [U.S.] visa" for one of the client's relatives 
and of agreeing to aid a California tribe represented by Abramoff on tax 
and post office issues.

Ney also placed comments in the Congressional Record backing Abramoff's 
efforts to gain control of the Florida gambling company, SunCruz 
Casinos, and offered legislative language sought by Abramoff that would 
have reopened a Texas tribe's shuttered casino.

The court papers said Ney advanced the prospects of an Abramoff client, 
a telecommunications company that won a contract to wire the House.

Two of Abramoff's former partners have already pleaded guilty and have 
promised to cooperate in the ongoing investigation of congressional 
corruption and are prepared to testify against Ney in connection with 
his aid in the SunCruz purchase. Prosecutors in Florida and Washington 
are in discussions about where a case against Ney should be brought, 
officials said.

Ney reiterated yesterday that he had done nothing wrong and said he was 
misled by Abramoff.

One of Abramoff's former associates, Michael Scanlon, a onetime press 
aide to DeLay, was a secret partner in Abramoff's Indian tribal scheme. 
Abramoff not only charged the tribes lobbying fees but also urged them 
to hire Scanlon's public relations firm at hugely inflated prices. 
Scanlon, in turn, kicked back half of the money to Abramoff, who was 
thus able to conceal the funds from public disclosure and even from the 
lobbyist's law firm.

They spread tribal money around and sought legislative favors in return. 
Abramoff and Scanlon "offered and provided a stream of things of value 
to public officials in exchange for official acts and influence and 
agreements to provide official action and influence," a statement of 
facts attached to the plea agreement said. "These things of value 
included, but are not limited to, foreign and domestic travel, golf 
fees, frequent meals, entertainment, election support for candidates for 
government office, employment for relatives of officials and campaign 
contributions."

Among the things of interest to investigators are payments made by 
Abramoff and his colleagues to the wives of some lawmakers and actions 
taken by Rudy and other senior Capitol Hill aides, some of whom went to 
work for Abramoff at the law firm Greenberg Traurig LLP, lawyers and 
others familiar with the probe said.

Another person under scrutiny, sources said, is DeLay, who is facing 
separate campaign finance charges in his home state of Texas.

"Tom DeLay is not concerned that Mr. Abramoff is cooperating," said 
Richard Cullen, his attorney. "He urges everyone involved to cooperate 
in the investigation and to tell the truth." Cullen had no comment on 
allegations involving former DeLay aides Rudy and Scanlon.

Among the trips under scrutiny is a golf excursion to Scotland that 
DeLay and aides took with Abramoff in 2000 and a similar trip Ney took 
two years later.

DeLay has taken three overseas trips with Abramoff since 1997 -- to the 
Mariana Islands, Russia and Scotland -- and received more than $70,000 
from Abramoff, his associates and tribal clients for his campaign 
committees.

Investigating DeLay could take up to a year and require the cooperation 
of other witnesses before issues surrounding the Texas Republican are 
resolved, according to people familiar with the case.

Sen. Conrad Burns (R-Mont.), Rep. John T. Doolittle (R-Calif.) and other 
legislators involved with Indian issues are among those being 
investigated, sources said.

A spokesman for Doolittle, whose wife received payments from Abramoff's 
lobbying firm, has previously said there was no connection with her 
husband's work. Burns's office has said his actions on behalf of 
Abramoff's tribal clients were in sync with his support for improving 
the lot of Indian tribes.

Also of interest to prosecutors is former deputy interior secretary J. 
Steven Griles, who held the job from 2001 to 2004. He has said he never 
tried to intercede on behalf of Abramoff's clients, but e-mails released 
by a Senate committee show more than half a dozen contacts Griles had 
with Abramoff or with a woman working as the lobbyist's go-between.

Prosecutors are continuing to investigate two of DeLay's top former 
deputies, Rudy and Edwin A. Buckham. Rudy is under investigation for 
assistance he allegedly provided Abramoff's lobbying clients while he 
was working for DeLay. Payments from Abramoff clients and associates to 
Liberty Consulting -- a political firm founded by Rudy's wife, Lisa -- 
are also under review by the Justice Department. Rudy did not return 
calls seeking comment yesterday.

Abramoff maintained a business relationship with Buckham, who runs the 
Alexander Strategy Group with Rudy. Among the areas of interest to 
prosecutors is client business directed to the Alexander Strategy Group 
when the firm was hiring the spouses of members of Congress, including 
DeLay's wife, Christine.

Christine DeLay was paid about $115,000 over three years while 
performing a special project -- contacting members of Congress to find 
out their favorite charity, according to her attorney.

Fisher, offering the Justice Department's first public comments on an 
inquiry that began in spring 2004, said that the Abramoff case is "very 
active and ongoing." She said the department is committed to making sure 
that people know "government is not for sale."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/03/AR2006010300474.html?referrer=email
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