| Case Digest |
Respondent plead guilty to one count of accessory after the fact to a wire fraud scheme to deprive the public of the honest services of an elected official, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §3. Respondent was a specialist in tax law, who provided tax collection services and operated a tax collection business known as Municipal Tax Bureau. State Senator, F. Joseph Loeper entered into an agreement with Respondent and Municipal Tax Bureau to which Sentator Loeper would receive a monthly consulting fee in exchange for consulting services rendered on behalf of the bureau. Between 1993 and 1997, Respondent, directly or indirectly made monthly payments to Senator Loeper, who had a written consulting agreement with Respondent’s tax collection business. Acting in his official capacity as the Majority Leader of the Pennsylvania Senate, Senator Loeper advocated for the passage of, and voted for, proposed legislation that would be beneficial to Respondent’s business; voted against proposed legislation that would have been disadvantageous to Respondent’s business; and helped Respondent with efforts to obtain collection contracts with local governments and state agencies.
Respondent knew that Senator Loeper was required by state and federal law to disclose his financial and business relationship with Respondent and knew that Senator Loeper had filed a false financial disclosure form with the Pennsylvania Ethics Commission. By overt act and omission, Respondent actively assisted Senator Loeper in evading his legal obligation to publicly disclose Respondent’s payments to Loeper.
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