The first week of former Rep. William Jefferson's (D-La.) corruption trial was dominated by testimony from the head of a telecommunications firm who said he paid thousands of dollars to the lawmaker for his influence.Kentucky businessman Vernon Jackson said Jefferson used his office to secure multimillion-dollar deals for the telecommunications firm iGate, and enriched himself in the process.
Jackson is a star witness for the prosecution, which claims Jefferson used his office to help iGate in exchange for hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes. Jefferson faces a maximum of 235 years in prison if convicted on all counts.
Jackson took the stand in a green prison jumpsuit Tuesday through Thursday and is expected to continue testifying on Monday. He's serving a seven-year, three-month prison sentence after pleading guilty to bribery charges involving Jefferson.
Jackson paid $500,000 to a consulting firm, the ANJ Group, owned by Andrea Jefferson, the congressman's wife. But Jackson testified the money was intended to get the lawmaker's help. Prosecutors argued that these payments were thinly-veiled bribes.
"I was paying him to use his office on behalf of iGate," Jackson testified, referring to the then-congressman.
Jackson suggested if he had refused to agree with any of Jefferson's terms, Jefferson would have stopped helping iGate.
"I didn't want to alienate him because I believed he could take steps to impede my company--even put us out of business," Jackson said.
Jefferson's defense team argues the payments were legitimate consulting fees paid for his wife's services to iGate. During its cross-examination of Jackson, the defense sought to show that the Jeffersons' dealings with iGate were always through ANJ.
Jefferson's defense said the former congressman made no "official acts" on behalf of iGate and that Jefferson and his family did not benefit materially because of acts Jefferson made as a congressman. They emphasized ANJ's business relationship with Jackson and iGate.
Jefferson lost his bid for reelection last fall to Republican Joseph Cao. He previously had won reelection, even after the FBI found $90,000 in unmarked bills in his fridge and linked him to a bribery scheme. Jefferson was indicted in 2007.