Jury Sees Videos of La. Rep. Jefferson Accepting Cash
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AP, July 7, 2009
A federal jury has seen video of a former Louisiana congressman accepting a suitcase filled with $100,000 in cash outside a northern Virginia hotel.
The videos played Tuesday are a key piece of evidence in the bribery trial of William Jefferson, a Democrat who represented parts of New Orleans. He’s accused of accepting more than $400,000 in bribes to broker business deals in Africa.
The FBI recorded the pickup from four different angles, all of which were shown to the jury.
On the video, Jefferson seemed wary of accepting the money in public. When asked by an FBI informant if he wanted to peek inside the suitcase at the contents, he tersely replied, “No, I would not.”
Jefferson’s lawyers have said Jefferson’s business deals weren’t illegal.
(Posted on July 8, 2009)