Ex-Nebraska U.S. Rep. Jeff Fortenberry, facing felony charges in D.C., alleges political prosecution

Source: Omaha World Herald

Molly Ashford 9 hrs ago

Former Nebraska U.S. Rep. Jeff Fortenberry, facing a second trial on campaign finance felonies in federal court, filed a series of motions on Tuesday — in part seeking to gather evidence that he has been selectively prosecuted for his political views.

Fortenberry was convicted by a federal jury in Los Angeles of concealing conduit campaign donations and two counts of lying to federal agents, all felonies, in 2022. But those convictions were reversed last year after the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found that the trial should have taken place in Nebraska or Washington, D.C., not California. Earlier this year, federal prosecutors opted to retry the case in D.C., with a trial in the case set for February. The sole difference between the cases, besides the venue, is that Fortenberry now faces one count of lying to federal agents, not two.

The charges stem from Fortenberry receiving, through intermediaries, a $30,000 illegal campaign donation from billionaire Nigerian businessman Gilbert Chagoury at a 2016 fundraiser and allegedly lying about his knowledge of the nature of the donation during later interviews with FBI agents. Fortenberry did eventually donate the illegal money to charity, but prosecutors said he only did so after being interviewed by the FBI for a second time.

On Tuesday, attorneys for Fortenberry, a Republican, filed a series of motions arguing that the charges should be dismissed; that the government has selectively targeted Fortenberry for prosecution because of his conservatism; and that one of the prosecutors on the case should be disqualified. Patricia Hartman, spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, said the government would respond to Fortenberry’s allegations in court filings.

Read more: http://archive.today/hI9bN