The wide-ranging probe into the activities of disgraced GOP lobbyist Jack Abramoff has netted another conviction.
Trevor Blackann, a former aide to two Missouri Republicans, Rep. Roy Blunt and Sen. Kit Bond, pleaded guilty today to making false statements on his tax returns, concealing thousands of dollars in illegal gifts he received from Team Abramoff, reports The Hill.
What were those gifts? Only a free trip to Game 1 of the 2003 World Series in New York, a junket that included:
- airline travel to and from New York City.
- a ticket to the game.
- admission to, and entertainment at, a “gentleman’s club” for the married aide.
- one-night accommodations in an “upscale” hotel.
- transportation in a chauffeured SUV.
- a souvenir baseball jersey.
- free meals and drinks.
All in all, not a bad haul.
In return, court filings allege, Blackann got Bond to write a letter of support for someone who wanted a political appointment to the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
According to the Associated Press, Blackann said in court documents Blackann that he knew “the lobbyists gave these things of value for or because of official actions they were seeking from him or had obtained from him.”
Abramoff has been cooperating with prosecutors as they build cases against others in his circle.