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| -Lurid Crime Tales- |
| Conyers took cash and jewelry, ex-aide says |
| 2009-06-29 |
| Monica Conyers has admitted accepting bribes in a sludge deal, but the Detroit councilwoman's political adviser and onetime chief of staff told the Free Press she received cash and jewelry for brokering other questionable transactions. The aide, Sam Riddle, said Conyers even helped draft a letter sent by her husband, Congressman John Conyers Jr., D-Mich., to help a man with whom she had financial ties. It is unclear whether John Conyers knew of his wife's alleged link to the businessman. In that deal, Riddle said, Monica Conyers arranged for Riddle to get a $20,000 contract with Greektown entrepreneur Dimitrios (Jim) Papas in about 2007. Riddle said Papas hired him for crisis consulting and political advising -- but he was never asked to do any work. She then demanded $10,000 of that money as a "finder's fee," Riddle said. At some point after Papas paid him, Riddle said, John Conyers sent a letter to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in support of a controversial hazardous waste injection well in Romulus that one of Papas' companies was seeking to operate. Federal investigators examined a variety of Monica Conyers' dealings. U.S. Attorney Terrence Berg said Sunday: "We didn't have any evidence the congressman was knowingly or intentionally involved in Ms. Conyers' illegal conduct." Monica Conyers' lawyer wouldn't discuss Papas. And Papas did not return messages seeking comment. Karen Morgan, John Conyers' spokeswoman, declined to discuss the letter. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #10 ...she took money in exchange for her vote on a $1.2 billion sewage sludge contract. That be a lot of sludge cake! |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2009-06-29 22:15 |
| #9 Jimmy would be proud. |
| Posted by: Skunky Glins 5*** 2009-06-29 18:50 |
| #8 Teamster's Hall in Detroit An appropriate setting for such a crooked group Actually, one of the LEAST crooked places in Detroit, if you catch my drift. |
| Posted by: Mullah Richard 2009-06-29 13:55 |
| #7 The group's spokesman Tim Gardner said 160 members voted at the meeting held in Teamster's Hall in Detroit. An appropriate setting for such a crooked group. |
| Posted by: mom 2009-06-29 13:31 |
| #6 Ah. It appears we have the definition of "unclear". Looks like ya on your own, baby... Detroit -- The 14th Congressional District Democratic Party Organization has passed a unanimous resolution backing Congressman John Conyers Jr., whose wife pleaded guilty in federal court to a single count of conspiracy to commit bribery. "Congressman Conyers has provided outstanding leadership throughout the district and we all look forward to continuing to work with him in the future," Dearborn Democrat Isaac Robinson, chairman of the 14th District Political Organizing Committee, said in a written statement. "Our thoughts and prayers are with the Conyers family. This is an unfortunate situation, but has no negative reflection on Rep. Conyers, one of the most powerful members of Congress, who fights for our district and Michigan every day." The group's spokesman Tim Gardner said 160 members voted at the meeting held in Teamster's Hall in Detroit. Conyers' wife, Detroit Councilwoman Monica Conyers, pleaded guilty and admitted in federal court that she took money in exchange for her vote on a $1.2 billion sewage sludge contract. According to court documents, Conyers is also accused of tossing her support behind projects being pitched to the city's General Retirement Fund pension board, while she was a trustee. The Conyerses were married June 4, 1990, when she was 25 and John Conyers, until then a lifelong bachelor, was 61. She was seven months pregnant during the ceremony with the couple's first son, John Conyers III, according to state and county records. The two had met while she was an intern working for the U.S. Congress. I'll wait for ya, baby...maybe. |
| Posted by: tu3031 2009-06-29 12:52 |
| #5 Looking at him, then looking at her, I can understand why there'd be no pillow talk ... |
| Posted by: Steve White 2009-06-29 12:42 |
| #4 Gee, I sure hope they remembered to declare those bribes to the IRS. It's still income, no matter the legality of the source. |
| Posted by: mojo 2009-06-29 11:46 |
| #3 Bling in my Dolmades? |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2009-06-29 11:42 |
| #2 It's unclear what the meaning of "unclear" is. |
| Posted by: Richard of Oregon 2009-06-29 11:35 |
| #1 It is unclear whether John Conyers knew of his wife's alleged link to the businessman. Ah. "Unclear"... |
| Posted by: tu3031 2009-06-29 11:19 |