Former San Diego Mayor Maureen O'Connor charged with money laundering (Romney?)

Former San Diego Mayor Maureen O'Connor charged with money laundering

Report: Charge involves at least $10K transaction

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Posted: 02/14/2013
Last Updated: 3 hours ago

SAN DIEGO - Former San Diego Mayor Maureen O'Connor is scheduled to be arraigned in federal court Thursday on a single money laundering charge, and there are indications the previously unannounced case is about to be resolved, a newspaper reported.

The money-laundering charge the 66-year-old O'Connor faces involves engaging in a monetary transaction of $10,000 or more, with the money being laundered coming from some kind of unlawful or criminal activity, according to U-T San Diego. Specific details of O'Connor's alleged crime were not immediately reported.

"Ms. O'Connor's case is set on calendar for arraignment, and the matter is set for disposition," Assistant U.S. Attorney Philip Halpern told the newspaper. Halpern is the U.S. Attorney Office's chief of major frauds and special prosecutions section.

O'Connor is scheduled Thursday to appear before U.S. Magistrate Judge David Bartick. If convicted, she could face up to 10 years in prison, though it is unlikely she would face the maximum, according to U-T San Diego, which quoted court records.

The court information indicates that the case is being resolved before a federal grand jury indicts her, U-T San Diego reported, noting that in such cases both sides often agree to a sentence or a range of possible penalties.

O'Connor was San Diego's first female mayor, holding the office for two terms from 1986 to 1992. The popular Democrat was a physical education teacher before entering the political arena. She sat on the City Council and the San Diego Unified Port District Commission prior to becoming mayor.

In 1977, she married Robert O. Peterson, who founded the Jack-In-The-Box fast-food chain and later Southern California First National Bank, which eventually became part of the Union Bank empire. The couple had no children, and he died in 1994.

O'Connor kept a low profile since leaving the mayor's office but her real estate investments recently gained attention, according to U-T San Diego. She sold the luxury Heritage House resort in Mendocino County for $19.5 million in 2005 and has since sued the German bank that provided financing for the buyers for fraud, the newspaper reported.

In 2010, O'Connor sold the La Jolla home now owned by former Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney for $2.5 million. The sale was a short sale, and soon after the purchase the county reassessed the property at a $4.5 million value, according to U-T San Diego.

http://www.10news.com/news/former-san-diego-mayor-maureen-oconnor-charged-with-money-laundering-021413

Local TV news is saying she gambled away more than a $1 BILLION
in Atlantic City, Las Vegas, and local Indian casinos.

Her husband died, 3 of her siblings died, her 2 best friends died . . .

Ex-Mayor O'Connor Charged with Stealing Millions from Foundation

Maureen O'Connor, 66, served as San Diego's mayor from 1986 to 1992

By Gene Cubbison, Paul Krueger and R. Stickney
Thursday, Feb 14, 2013

NBC 7 San DiegoO'Connor walked into the federal courthouse with her attorney by her side Thursday.

Former San Diego Mayor Maureen O'Connor appeared in a federal courtroom in San Diego, eyes filled with tears, as she faced a money laundering charge for taking millions from her foundation.

O'Connor, 66, won and lost more than $1 billion in gambling winnings over a nine-year period of playing video poker in Las Vegas, Atlantic City and San Diego.

O'Connor faces a single charge of money laundering involving $10,000 or more according to court documents.

The money was removed from a foundation called the RP Foundation set up by her late husband according to her attorney.

“A sum of money which she intended to repay but was unable to repay,” said attorney Eugene Iredale.

The money was earmarked for charitable purposes but was used for other purposes he said.

O'Connor's entrance into the federal courthouse was unsteady.

Using a cane and answering haltingly, O’Connor appeared as a hollow shell of what she once was.

Attorneys say O’Connor won and lost up to $1 billion in gambling winnings over the course of 9 years.

The one-time leader of San Diego won and lost the staggering amount playing video poker in casinos ranging from San Diego to Atlantic City.

She pleaded not guilty and was put on supervised pre-trial status on deferred prosecution.

Her medical condition is such that she will not be booked immediately. Because she is under medical care of a physician, she’ll be booked Friday.

O'Connor, 66, served as San Diego's mayor from 1986 to 1992. She also served on the San Diego City Council and the port commission.

Ex-Mayor O'Connor Charged with Stealing Millions from Foundation | NBC 7 San Diego