Corruption Indictment for Ex-Senate Leader Bruno

[swag]

Source: New York Times

ALBANY — Joseph L. Bruno, the former State Senate majority leader, was indicted on Friday on charges that he reaped millions of dollars from companies seeking business from the state or from labor unions, capping a long-running investigation into one of New York’s most powerful political figures.

Federal prosecutors scheduled a press conference for 2:30 p.m. in Albany to announce the eight-count indictment, which is expected to charge Mr. Bruno under an anti-corruption law making it a crime to deprive citizens of honest services from their elected officials. Mr. Bruno is accused of collecting more than $3 million over a 13-year period, beginning in 1993, from a handful of businessmen seeking state contracts and grants, as well as contracts to manage pension fund investments for at least 16 labor unions.

Mr. Bruno, who stepped down last summer, pleaded not guilty at his arraignment at the federal courthouse in Albany on Friday afternoon and was released without bail. At a press conference following his arraignment, Mr. Bruno, a former boxer, said angrily, “I’m going to fight this and I’m going to win.”

. . .

Mr. Bruno, 79, is a Republican from the Albany area and led the State Senate for 14 years. He became the de facto leader of the state’s Republican Party after Gov. George E. Pataki left office. An outgoing and gregarious politico, he remains a friend of Gov. David A. Paterson and has close relationships with a number of political figures, though he was a bitter rival of former Gov. Eliot Spitzer.




Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/23/nyregion/24bruno.html?hp

[Renew Deal]

1. This is a long time coming.

He was supposed to go down around the time Spitzer did.

[nyc 4 Biden]

2. This is almost as great as when Spitzer was busted.

Scumbags!

[TheWraith]

4. Bruno is orders of magnitude worse than Spitzer.

Spitzer banged a hooker. Bruno has been engaged in widespread fraud and corruption on the order of many millions of dollars.

[pmdsyr32]

5. bruno

yea big difference from banging a hooker and ripping off the citizens of new york. that was real big time corruption.

[nyc 4 Biden]

7. You are right about the level of damage done...

I just thought the irony and hypocrisy involved in the Spitzer scandal was tops.

[No Elephants]

10. This tops the Spitzer fiasco by a great deal in every respect.

[ElsewheresDaughter]

3. Thank you Andrew!

[djg21]

12. Not Andrew (Cuomo)

It's the Public Integrity Bureau of DOJ.

Sorry. I didn't realize the Acting USA for the NDNY is also an Andrew (Baxter).

[eggplant]

6. I wonder if they'll take away his stadium?

http://www.littleballparks.com/Stadium/2002/Troy/Troy.htm

[xchrom]

8. republcans sure like to get their hands on OTHER peoples money. nt

[Shardik]

9. Updated NYT: Ex-Senate Leader Bruno Is Indicted for Corruption

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/24/nyregion/24bruno.html?em

[No Elephants]

11. Patterson has to have mixed feelings about this. Cuomo will probably try for

Daddy Cuomo's old job soon.