WSJ: New Indictment Expected in Hill ScandalsWhen Duke Cunningham went down in one of the largest congressional bribery scandals in history, he tried to take his main bribers with him: Mitchell Wade, who quickly confessed to the charge and has been cooperating with authorities; and Brent Wilkes, who’s rebuffed Duke’s accusation and maintained a stony silence to the Feds.
Now, the Wall Street Journal says that federal prosecutors are under orders to deliver a grand jury indictment against Wilkes by Feb. 15.
A note of caution: a Wilkes indictment has been rumored for months. But this has a ring of truth to it. Why? Because according to WSJ the order comes directly from just-ousted U.S. Attorney Carol Lam, who’s been overseeing the case — and who gave the order to take Wilkes down before she leaves on — you guessed it — February 15.
Wilkes is involved — some say centrally — in more than the Duke Cunningham scandal: prosecutors chasing Rep. Jerry Lewis (R-CA) also think he holds secrets that would help make a case against the former House Approprations Committee chairman, WSJ says. One of his companies was also the recipient of a questionable earmark courtesy of Rep. John Doolittle (R-CA), who is also under scrutiny by federal investigators.
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