William (Frozen Assets) Jefferson Pleads Not Guilty To Bribery

WILLIAM JEFFERSON MUST STEP DOWN

ALEXANDRIA, Va. - Rep. William Jefferson pleaded not guilty Friday to charges of soliciting more than $500,000 in bribes while using his office to broker business deals in Africa.

Jefferson, D-La., said he understood the charges during the federal court hearing. He was released on $100,000 unsecured bond.



"I am absolutely innocent of the charges that have been leveled against me," Jefferson said afterward. "I'm going to fight my heart out to clear my name."

As conditions for his release, U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III denied the congressman access to shotguns and rifles in his Louisiana home. Jefferson said the guns were used for hunting.

Ellis also ordered Jefferson to surrender his passport.

Jefferson, 60, will be allowed to travel in the Washington area and in Louisiana, but he will need approval for any other domestic or international travel, the judge said.

A 94-page indictment, handed down Monday, details 11 separate bribery schemes and 16 criminal counts, including racketeering, soliciting bribes, wire fraud, money laundering and obstruction of justice.

If convicted, Jefferson faces a possible maximum sentence of 235 years. His trial is scheduled for January.

Robert Trout, Jefferson's lawyer, said the complexity of the case required Jefferson to waive his right to a speedy trial.

"This has been investigated for two years," Trout said.

The charges came almost two years after investigators raided Jefferson's home in Washington and found $90,000 in cash stuffed in a box in his freezer.

During Friday's hearing, prosecutor Mark Lytle said the government had compiled evidence filling eight file cabinets and had extensive tape recordings. The prosecution's case could take up to a month to present, he said.

Jefferson was re-elected last year. After his indictment, he resigned from the House Small Business Committee while maintaining his innocence.

On Thursday, a federal judge froze Jefferson's assets and the House ethics committee voted to expand its own investigation of Jefferson to include any subject in the 16-count corruption indictment.

Jefferson is the first U.S. official to face charges under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, which prohibits corporate bribery overseas.

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Where is Jefferson's Mugshot? The left was so pleased to throw Tom Delay's Mugshot out there, where's Jeffersons? And why is he still a Congressman? Why hasnt Jefferson stepped down like Tom Delay did? Nancy Pelosi want's to put Jefferson on the "Homeland Security Committee"!!! I dont think so!! WILLIAM JEFFERSON MUST STEP DOWN. The Democrat Culture of Corruption continues on and on...

WILLIAM JEFFERSON MUST STEP DOWN

INDICTED!! WILLIAM (FROZEN ASSETS) JEFFERSON D-LA

Jury Indicts Jefferson in Bribery Probe

WASHINGTON - Rep. William Jefferson, D-La., was indicted Monday on federal charges of racketeering, soliciting bribes and money-laundering in a long- running bribery investigation into business deals he tried to broker in Africa.
The indictment handed up in federal court in Alexandria., Va., Monday is 94 pages long and lists 16 alleged violations of federal law that could keep Jefferson in prison for up to 235 years. He is charged with racketeering, soliciting bribes, wire fraud, money-laundering, obstruction of justice, conspiracy and violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.



Jefferson is accused of soliciting bribes for himself and his family, and also for bribing a Nigerian official.

Almost two years ago, in August 2005, investigators raided Jefferson's home in Louisiana and found $90,000 in cash stuffed into a box in his freezer.

Jefferson, 63, whose Louisiana district includes New Orleans, has said little about the case publicly but has maintained his innocence. He was re-elected last year despite the looming investigation.

Jefferson, in Louisiana on Monday, could not immediately be reached for comment.

Two of Jefferson's associates have already struck plea bargains with prosecutors and have been sentenced.

Brett Pfeffer, a former congressional aide, admitted soliciting bribes on Jefferson's behalf and was sentenced to eight years in prison.

Another Jefferson associate, Louisville, Ky., telecommunications executive Vernon Jackson, pleaded guilty to paying between $400,000 and $1 million in bribes to Jefferson in exchange for his assistance securing business deals in Nigeria and other African nations. Jackson was sentenced to more than seven years in prison.

Both Pfeffer and Jackson agreed to cooperate in the case against Jefferson in exchanges for their pleas.

The impact of the case has stretched across continents and even roiled presidential politics in Nigeria. According to court records, Jefferson told associates that he needed cash to pay bribes to the country's vice president, Atiku Abubakar.

Abubakar denied the allegations, which figured prominently in that country's presidential elections in April. Abubakar ran for the presidency and finished third.

The indictment does not name Abubakar. But it describes Jefferson's dealings with an unnamed "Nigerian Official A" who was a high-ranking official in Nigeria's executive branch who had a spouse in Potomac, Md. One of Abubakar's wives lived in that Washington suburb.

Court records indicate that Jefferson was videotape taking a $100,000 cash bribe from an FBI informant. Most of that money later turned up in a freezer in Jefferson's home.

In May 2006, the FBI raided Jefferson's congressional office, the first such raid on a sitting congressman's Capitol office. That move sparked a constitutional debate over whether the executive branch stepped over its boundary.

The legality of the raid is still being argued on appeal. House leaders objected to the search saying it was an unconstitutional intrusion on the lawmaking process. The FBI said the raid was necessary because Jefferson and his legal team had failed to respond to requests for documents.

Some but not all the documents seized in the raid have been turned over Justice Department prosecutors.

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Well it's about time. If convicted Jefferson could spend the rest of his life in jail. And this indictment is over and inch thick! It will be pretty hard to get out of this one seeing as it was all caught on Video Tape! How long will it be before Jefferson steps down? Or is that just a Republican thing? Will Syriana Pelosi ask or demand (Frozen Assets) step down? (Democrat's Policing Themselves? Ha!) And I thought this was going to be the "The Cleanest Congress Ever"? The Democrat corruption continues, on and on and on. Expect more of the "Cleanest Congress" to get caught up in this disaster.
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UPDATE:

Jefferson Tells Congressional Leaders He Will Take Leave From House Panel to Fight Charges

FIGHT THE CHARGES? LOL!! You FOOL! You are leaving because you are ALL OVER A VIDEO TAPE TAKING BRIBE MONEY! What a friggen dumbass.