Feds indict former Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert (R-IL) on bank-related charges

Feds indict former Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert on bank-related charges

Published May 28, 2015 Associated Press

http://a57.foxnews.com/global.fncsta....jpg?ve=1&tl=1Former Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., is seen in this photo. (AP Photo/Brian Kersey)

Federal prosecutors have indicted former U.S. House Speaker House Dennis Hastert on bank-related charges.

A statement from the U.S. attorney's office in Chicago says the 73-year-old Illinois Republican is accused of structuring the withdrawal of $952,000 in cash in order to evade the requirement that banks report cash transactions over $10,000. He's also accused of lying to the FBI.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2015...lated-charges/

Former House Speaker Dennis Hastert Indicted

Charges include evading anti-money laundering rules, making false statements

http://si.wsj.net/public/resources/i...0528172032.jpgENLARGE
A federal grand jury has indicted former House Speaker Dennis Hastert, shown here in Tampa, Fla., in 2012. PHOTO: DAVID PAUL MORRIS/BLOOMBERG NEWS


By ANDREW GROSSMAN And
BEN KESLING
May 28, 2015 5:38 p.m. ET

WASHINGTON—A federal grand jury has indicted former House Speaker Dennis Hastert on charges related to bank withdrawals of large sums of money that he allegedly paid to keep someone quiet about “past misconduct.”

Mr. Hastert is charged with evading anti-money-laundering rules—specifically, with intentionally withdrawing hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash in increments of less than $10,000 to avoid reporting requirements. He is also charged with lying to the Federal Bureau of Investigation about the withdrawals, telling agents he was taking the money out because he didn’t feel safe using the banking system.

In fact, the money was going to someone identified in the indictment only as “Individual A,” someone who had known Mr. Hastert for most of the person’s life. In 2010, Mr. Hastert agreed to pay this person $3.5 million “to compensate for and conceal his prior misconduct against Individual A.”

Mr. Hastert wasn’t immediately available for comment.

No date has been set for Mr. Hastert’s first court appearance. A judge has not yet been assigned in the case, said Kimberly Nerheim, spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Chicago. Although she could not say when a judge will be assigned, it is customary one will be assigned on the same or following day. At that time Mr. Hastert’s court appearance will likely be scheduled.

http://www.wsj.com/articles/former-h...ted-1432849134

I always felt strangely uneasy about Dennis Hastert, I like the guy, but never completely comfortable with him. Dennis became wealthy after arriving in Congress. Red flag for anyone who becomes wealthy while serving, it is a public service position.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by kevinssdad

I always felt strangely uneasy about Dennis Hastert, I like the guy, but never completely comfortable with him. Dennis became wealthy after arriving in Congress. Red flag for anyone who becomes wealthy while serving, it is a public service position.

---

And it's a shame, too, because on many issues he was with US when Bush II wasn't. Well, until these politicians fully understand that public service is not the road to wealth, but representation and service to the public only, they deserve all they get when they get caught. I'm a bit leery of "Individual A" type prosecutions, their names should be public because they will need to testify publicly at a trial, so I don't fully understand an indictment based on a secret witness.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Judy

And it's a shame, too, because on many issues he was with US when Bush II wasn't. Well, until these politicians fully understand that public service is not the road to wealth, but representation and service to the public only, they deserve all they get when they get caught. I'm a bit leery of "Individual A" type prosecutions, their names should be public because they will need to testify publicly at a trial, so I don't fully understand an indictment based on a secret witness.

---

Individual A may be a whistle blower with promised immunity if he came forward. He may be one of several, such as B and C. Whatever it is, I'm sure it is for the purpose of getting info from Hastert, or enticement of more witnesses. I have a hunch that more drama is yet to come. Stay tuned!

He was being blackmailed to hide something he did before going to congress.

Probably when he was a teacher and coach.

. . . After teaching English in Osaka, Japan,^[8] Hastert moved to Yorkville in 1964, 55 miles (89 km) west of Chicago, and took a job as a sociology, economics, and speech teacher at Yorkville High School from 1964 to 1980. He also coached wrestling and football, leading the wrestling team to a state title in 1976 . . .

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dennis_Hastert

U.S. Accuses Ex-House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert of Paying to Hide ‘Misconduct’

By MONICA DAVEY MAY 28, 2015

http://static01.nyt.com/images/2015/...-master675.jpg

Former House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert in March 2007. Mr. Hastert was indicted on Thursday. CreditDoug Mills/The New York Times


CHICAGO — J. Dennis Hastert, the former speaker of the House of Representatives, has been charged with lying to the F.B.I. and making cash withdrawals from banks in a way that was designed to hide that he was paying $3.5 million to someone for his “misconduct” from years ago, a federal indictment released on Thursday said.

Mr. Hastert, 73, the longest-serving Republican speaker, had worked as a lobbyist since leaving office. The indictment, announced by the United States attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, said Mr. Hastert, who was once a high school teacher and wrestling coach in Yorkville, Ill., had so far paid $1.7 million to the person, who had lived in Yorkville and had known Mr. Hastert for most of his or her life. Mr. Hastert worked in Yorkville from 1965 to 1981.

In 2010, during meetings between Mr. Hastert and the unnamed individual, the two discussed “past misconduct” by Mr. Hastert against the person, according to the indictment.

In those meetings and in later discussions, Mr. Hastert agreed to provide money to the person “in order to compensate for and conceal his prior misconduct,” the indictment said. It said he was structuring the cash withdrawals in increments designed to avoid bank reporting requirements. The indictment does not provide details of the misconduct.
http://static01.nyt.com/images/2015/...-master180.gif
Document: Indictment of John Dennis Hastert

Mr. Hastert could not be reached for comment at his office in Washington.

Each of the two charges carries a penalty of as much as five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, the prosecutor’s office said. Mr. Hastert is to appear at an arraignment at a future date, the prosecutors said.

Kimberly Nerheim, a spokeswoman for the United States attorney’s office, declined to identify the person being paid — who was referred to as Individual A in the indictment — or to comment on whether that individual would face any charges.

Mr. Hastert, first elected to Congress from Illinois in 1986, was suddenly catapulted to speaker in 1999 during a moment of crisis for his party. Newt Gingrich had just stepped down after a contentious election marked by wounds the House Republicans inflicted on themselves during impeachment proceedings against President Bill Clinton.

The Republicans’ first choice to succeed Mr. Gingrich, Robert L. Livingston of Louisiana, gave up the position before he ever assumed it, acknowledging that he had carried on adulterous affairs in the past.

Mr. Hastert, who became a popular and unifying leader, was promoted for the job by Representative Tom DeLay of Texas, then a powerful Republican force in the House, largely because of Mr. Hastert’s reputation as a conciliator. Mr. DeLay recognized that he himself was too polarizing for the job.

In office, Mr. Hastert, who was known as “the coach” for his former occupation and his leadership style, pressed a series of health care initiatives and played a leading role in shaping the congressional response to the Sept. 11 attacks.

In 2006, he faced criticism that he and top aides failed to respond to warnings about the behavior of Representative Mark Foley of Florida, whose sexually explicit electronic messages to former Congressional pages sparked a scandal that contributed to the Republicans’ losing their House majority.

Mr. Hastert chose not to seek re-election in 2008.
According to the federal indictment made public on Thursday, Mr. Hastert gave money to the unnamed person for four years, starting in 2010.

At first, Mr. Hastert provided $50,000 in cash from several bank accounts to the person every six weeks, for a total of 15 such exchanges, the indictment said.

Banks are required to report cash withdrawals of more than $10,000, and in April 2012, bank officials questioned Mr. Hastert about sizable withdrawals from his accounts.

That July, Mr. Hastert began making smaller withdrawals, of less than $10,000, and he continued providing them to the person at prearranged meeting places and times, the indictment said.

Later, the arrangements changed so that Mr. Hastert was providing $100,000 every three months, the indictment said.



By 2013, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service began investigating the withdrawals, focusing, federal authorities said, on whether cash was being taking out in a way that was intended to evade bank reporting requirements.

Last Dec. 8, Mr. Hastert was interviewed by federal agents. He told the agents that he was not paying anyone with the money, but was keeping the withdrawals for himself because he felt unsafe with the banking system.

“Yeah,” Mr. Hastert told the agents, according to the indictment. “I kept the cash. That’s what I’m doing.”

This is not the first time a political figure has attracted attention through banking practices. Eliot Spitzer, then the governor of New York, came to the attention of federal investigators after bank officials noticed that he was moving around thousands of dollars in a manner they thought was intended to conceal the purpose and source of the money. As it turned out, Mr. Spitzer was using the money to pay for prostitutes. He resigned when the payments became public; he was not charged with a crime.

Since leaving office, Mr. Hastert has been a prominent lobbyist in Washington. He is co-leader of the Public Policy & Political Law Practice at the Washington law firm of Dickstein Shapiro, according to the firm’s website.

By Thursday night, Mr. Hastert had resigned from Dickstein Shapiro, an official with the firm said, and his biography had been removed from its website. Mr. Hastert also resigned from the board of the CME Group, the Chicago-based operator of one of the world’s largest futures and derivatives exchanges, a spokeswoman said.

The reaction in Washington was primarily one of astonishment as Republicans tried to absorb the news that Mr. Hastert, elevated in some respects for his upright image, was in such trouble. Allies and former advisers said that they were surprised by the case and that they had no knowledge of the acts described in the indictment. “It has come completely out of left field and is pretty shocking,” said John Feehery, a spokesman for Mr. Hastert in his days as speaker.

In his home state, Republicans seemed stunned by the announcement. Some described Mr. Hastert as a well-liked man whose life story — from small town coach to House speaker — had always been part of his low-key, regular-guy appeal and approachable nature.

“We’re all shocked,” said Pat Brady, the former chairman of the Illinois Republican Party. “It’s been a total shock in the Land of Lincoln. No one had been hearing anything about this. Not a word.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/29/us...l-charges.html

- BREAKING NEWS -

INDICTED FORMER HOUSE SPEAKER DENNIS HASTERT REPORTEDLY WAS PAYING BLACKMAIL MONEY TO CONCEAL SEXUAL MISCONDUCT WHILE WORKING AS A HIGH SCHOOL TEACHER AND COACH IN ILLINOIS

Ex-Speaker Hastert reportedly paying to conceal sexual misconduct

Published May 29, 2015 FoxNews.com

DEVELOPING ...
Ex-House Speaker Dennis Hastert reportedly was paying someone to cover up sexual misconduct before he was indicted for allegedly concealing those payments.

The Los Angeles Times reported Friday that the bank-related charges in the indictment pertain to payments he was making to a male individual from his past.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2015/05/29/ex-speaker-hastert-reportedly-paying-to-conceal-sexual-misconduct/

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Judy

. . . I'm a bit leery of "Individual A" type prosecutions, their names should be public because they will need to testify publicly at a trial, so I don't fully understand an indictment based on a secret witness.

---

The names of sex victims are usually withheld

especial if they were minors at the time of the offense.

Dennis Hastert Paid to Hide Sexual Relationship With Student: Official

by PETE WILLIAMS, ERIN MCCLAM and TRACY CONNOR

Former House Speaker Dennis Hastert paid a man to conceal a sexual relationship they had while the man was a student at the high school where Hastert taught, a federal law enforcement official told NBC News on Friday.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity. Tribune reported Friday that two unnamed federal law enforcement officials said that Hastert paid a man from his past to conceal sexual misconduct.

Related: Ex-Speaker Hastert Indicted Over Cash Withdrawals
The Yorkville, Illinois, school district where Hastert taught and coached wrestling from 1965 to 1981 said Friday that it had "no knowledge of Mr. Hastert's alleged misconduct, nor has any individual contacted the District to report any such misconduct."

http://media3.s-nbcnews.com/j/newscm...ux-600-320.jpg
Dennis Hastert, then a Social Studies teacher, in a 1975 high school yearbook photo.Yorkville High School Yearbook

Hastert was indicted Thursday on charges that he structured bank withdrawals to avoid federal reporting requirements and later lied about it to the FBI.

The indictment said that Hastert was paying an unidentified person from his past to conceal Hastert's "prior misconduct." The indictment did not specify the alleged misconduct or name the person.

Representatives for Hastert have not returned requests for comment from NBC News.

Charles Hastert, a nephew, told NBC News on Friday that his uncle "has always been as honest and clean as they come." He said he believes the charges are probably a political witch-hunt.

Jeff Jerabek, who was on the wrestling team in the mid-1970s, said there was never so much as a rumor of impropriety. He described Hastert as friendly and in tune with his students.

"If you had a problem, it wouldn't be hard to talk to him about it," said Jerabek, whose two older brothers were also on the team. "I remember one time I was walking along with a frown and he said, 'Hey smiley, cheer up.' Some teachers, it's just a job. Not him. He was a friendly guy."

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/weather/...-train-n366456