FBI looking into the sale of Cunningham Home.

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

Comparing residences

The table shows characteristics of the home on Mercado Drive that Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham sold in November 2003 for $1,675,000 and a nearby home that sold in June 2003 for a comparable price ... $1,665,000.




Address:
Mercado Drive, SD
(Home has a Del Mar mailing address)


Site size:
6,800 square feet


View:
None


Age:
15 years


Condition:
"Average"


Rooms:
4 bdrms., 3.5 baths


Other features:
Deck, two fireplaces


Spa or pool:
None




Address:
Boquita Drive, SD
(One block southeast of the Mercado residence)


Site size:
10,500 square feet


View:
Ocean


Age:
1 year


Condition:
"Super-Upgrade"


Rooms:
5 bdrms., 5.5 baths


Other features:
Patio/deck, two fireplaces


Spa or pool:
Spa


Source: The Lackner Group


HANS ERICSSON
The Duke-Stir, docked along the banks of the Potomac River.





WASHINGTON – The FBI has opened an inquiry into Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham's 2003 sale of his Del Mar house to a defense contractor, who later sold it at a $700,000 loss, a Justice Department official said yesterday.


The action comes amid fresh signs of unusual personal ties between Cunningham and the defense contractor, who named a 42-foot yacht after the Rancho Santa Fe Republican and turned it over to him to use while in Washington.


The Justice Department official, who spoke on the condition that he not be identified because of the inquiry's preliminary nature, would not comment about its scope. However, the head of the FBI office in San Diego had reflected the agency's curiosity a day earlier.


"We are very interested in what has been reported to date, and we welcome more information," Dan Dzwilewski, special agent in charge of the FBI's San Diego office, said Wednesday. "Public corruption matters represent one of the highest priorities of the FBI.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/nation/20050617-9999-1n17duke.html

[Walt Starr]

1. Neat way for them to try and hide a $700K bribe! n/t

[xray s]

2. I don't trust the BushCo DoJ to follow through on this

No more than they have followed through on the Palme matter. We need an independent prosecutor to go after all the war profiteers in this evil administration.

They are making money off the spilled blood of our men and women in uniform, and tens of thousands of innocent Iraqis.

[thjay]

3. Duke's going down

The local fundie rag paper has this story on the front page. The SD Union (notoriously conservative as well) broke the original story. Both papers have run numerous letters to the editor that are critical on the Duke. I don't care how conservative this area is, he can not survive it. The remaining question is does he resign or just not run again in 06.

[havocmom]

4. Any info on how much rent Cunningham pays Wade for the boat he lives on?

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-duke17jun17,1,1550949.story?coll=la-headlines-california
<snip> SAN DIEGO — Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham (R-San Diego) promised Thursday to produce financial records to prove that he has done nothing inappropriate by living aboard a yacht owned by the executive of a defense firm that he has supported in its bid to win government contracts.

<snip> Though declining to be interviewed, Cunningham issued a statement from his Washington office: "I am putting information and records together so that you will know how much I pay to stay there and you will see that everything we've done is appropriate."

<snip> The statement was issued in response to a story in the North County Times, a newspaper in Cunningham's district, reporting that Cunningham lives aboard a yacht owned by Mitchell J. Wade, president and chief executive of MZM Inc., while in Washington.

<snip> The 42-foot yacht is docked at a yacht club on the Potomac River at a boat slip rented by Cunningham. His own boat is being repaired.

discussed here http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=1557594

Any bets that the rent is less than the slip fees? Any doubts that his staff is working this weekend to manfacture rent receipts?