Delay sought for Abramoff sentencing in Florida fraud case

Article published Feb 17, 2006
Delay sought for Abramoff sentencing in Florida fraud case

MIAMI The U.S. Justice Department and defense lawyers asked a federal judge Friday to delay the scheduled March sentencing of lobbyist Jack Abramoff in a Florida fraud case to allow him more time to cooperate in a broader government corruption investigation.

Abbe Lowell, Abramoff's lawyer in Washington, D.C., said in a telephone conference with U.S. District Judge Paul C. Huck that if sentencing went forward as scheduled on March 16 it would be "upsetting to what's happening behind the scenes."

"It's based solely on the sensitivities of cooperation," Lowell said of the request.

Abramoff pleaded guilty Jan. 4 to charges that he and a former partner, Adam Kidan, concocted a fake wire transfer to make it appear they were putting a sizable stake of their own money into the $147.5 million purchase in 2000 of the SunCruz Casinos gambling fleet. Kidan also pleaded guilty.

Abramoff also pleaded guilty last month to charges stemming from an investigation into the former lobbyists' ties to members of Congress and to the Bush administration.

Both guilty pleas require extensive cooperation from Abramoff in exchange for potential leniency at sentencing. The motion, signed by federal prosecutors and defense lawyers, seeks a delay of up to 90 days in the March sentencing date.

"Mr. Abramoff has been working very hard in terms of his cooperation," said Neal Sonnett, Abramoff's attorney in Miami.

Huck, however, did not immediately agree to any delay, mainly because he had not seen a copy of the joint motion requesting it. He said he would consider it but served notice on the lawyers not to expect him to automatically agree to such requests.

"You're not going to get any special consideration," Huck said. "My inclination is to go forward."

"I'm just asking the court to be open-minded," Lowell said. "It's not a normal case in many ways."

Kidan, scheduled to be sentenced March 1, is also included in the motion for a delay.

The Senate ethics committee will defer any investigation into influence peddling by Abramoff because of Justice Department concerns, according to a committee letter released Friday.

The deferral follows normal practice when there is a criminal investigation that overlaps the conduct to be investigated by the Senate.

Democracy 21, a group that tracks campaign finance issues and congressional ethics, had asked the ethics committee last November to investigate lawmakers' ties to Abramoff.

The organization cited an Associated Press story that reported nearly three dozen members of Congress pressed the government to block a Louisiana Indian tribe from opening a casino. The lawmakers collected large donations from rival tribes and their lobbyist, Abramoff.

Many intervened with letters to Interior Secretary Gale Norton within days of receiving money from tribes represented by Abramoff or using the lobbyist's restaurant for fundraising, the AP reported.

In the letter released Friday by Democracy 21, Committee Chairman George Voinovich, R-Ohio and ranking Democrat Tim Johnson of South Dakota wrote, "The Department of Justice has made the committee aware that it has concerns about the impact an Ethics Committee investigation may have on the department's ongoing criminal investigation into Abramoff-related matters."

"The committee also fully appreciates the significant level of public concern that exists regarding 'Abramoff-related' allegations," the letter said. "The committee believes strongly, however, that the interest of the American public in this matter will be best served at this time by allowing the criminal investigation to proceed without the risk of being impeded ... ."

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