WASHINGTON, 13 August 2005 — Jack Abramoff, the Republican lobbyist involved in ethics allegations currently facing House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, was indicted Thursday on unrelated fraud charges involving his purchase of a fleet of gambling boats.
A trail of intrigue that includes the ill-fated gambling boat deal, including a Mafia-style killing and lawsuits over alleged financial irregularities, has entangled Abramoff, 46, once one of the most powerful Washington lobbyists in town and major Republican fundraiser.
Abramoff is a study in contradictions. A smooth-talking political power player and an Orthodox Jew, the former high school weightlifter produced movies in Hollywood before becoming one of Washington’s top lobbyists.
But yesterday he was accused in a federal grand jury indictment of conspiring with a partner to defraud two lenders out of $60 million in the casino boat deal.
The indictment by a federal grand jury in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., charges Abramoff and his New York business partner, who owned the Dial-a-Mattress franchise in Washington, Adam Kidman, 36; with conspiracy and wire fraud in the $147.5 million purchase of Sun Cruz Casinos in 2000.
A few months after the transaction, the man who was selling the SunCruz Casinos fleet, Greek-born Konstantinos “Gus” Boulis was shot to death in his car in a gangland-style hit straight out of “Goodfellas” near his Fort Lauderdale office. His slaying remains unsolved five years later.
Thursday’s indictment charged Abramoff and Kidan with one count of conspiracy and five counts of wire fraud — each count carries up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine — and asked that they be forced to pay $60 million in criminal penalties.
Abramoff has been one of Washington’s best-connected and best-paid lobbyists. In 2002, he collected $12.2 million in fees from Indian tribes and additional sums from the General Council for Islamic Banks and other clients.
Abramoff and Scanlon have denied any wrongdoing.
