On Wednesday, 11-term Philadelphia congressman and pal to President Obama, Chaka Fattah, was indicted in a racketeering case involving the misappropriation of hundreds of thousands of federal, charitable, and campaign dollars, reports the Associated Press.
Along with four associates, Fattah is charged in nearly 30 instances including bribery, conspiracy to commit wire, honest services fraud, bank fraud, mail fraud, money laundering, and several other charges.
As the AP reports, the fraud investigation surrounds his 2007 failed run for mayor:
Prosecutors said the charges covered several schemes, including the use of federal grants and charitable contributions to Fattah's educational foundation to pay back part of a $1 million loan from a wealthy campaign supporter and arranging a federal grant in lieu of a $130,000 payment to a political consultant.
When interviewed on camera by NBC News, Fattah said, "This is not Deflate-Gate, alright? This is a normal issue of which there are allegations." The congressman then assured that he has never been involved in any wrongdoing.
The U.S. representative has a close relationship with Barack Obama, dating back to his time in the Senate. That relationship continues today. Earlier this month, Fattah joined Obama on Air Force One as the president was on his way to speak at the NAACP convention in Philadelphia. Fattah and Obama stand together in support of criminal justice reform and making the system more fair.
Fattah also recently defended Philadelphia, a "sanctuary city" for illegals, and said that "there's no possibility" for the city to lose that status, especially, he added, since it goes against the position of his friend in the White House.
July is shaping up to be a busy one for the congressman as earlier in the month, he was added to the Genetic Engineering Biotechnology News Congressional Hall of Fame list for his support of more participation by the black community in STEM fields -- an issue also championed by President Obama. In fact, the Fattah Neuroscience Initiative was signed into law in 2011 by the president in an effort to increase funding and research into brain injuries, Parkinson's, and depression.
A court date has yet to be set for Rep. Fattah to answer on the myriad of corruption charges brought against him.
