Prosecutors expand indictment against Kilpatrick and Ferguson; FBI raids Ferguson's office
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Copyright 2011 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Posted: 11/16/2011
DETROIT (WXYZ) - Federal prosecutors are expanding the indictment against former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, his father Bernard Kilpatrick, the former head of the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department Victor Mercado and Kilpatrick's friend, Bobby Ferguson.
The revised indictment also files 7 new counts of money laundering against Ferguson. It comes as FBI agents are raiding the offices of Ferguson. Sources tell Action News that the FBI is seizing Ferguson’s business equipment and property as part of a seizure order that’s related to the forfeiture proceedings the case against him.
Ferguson is facing two federal indictments.
The first is a RICO case that also involves former Mayor Kilpatrick, his father Bernard, Mercado and former mayoral aide Derrick Miller.
The five are accused of rigging water department contracts, extorting city contractors, and defrauding donors to various Kilpatrick-related non-profit funds. The indictment accuses them of using Kilpatrick’s position as a state representative and as mayor to financially enrich themselves and their families.
The expanded indictment alleges additional instances of kickbacks, extortion and add an instance of witness tampering.
In that new overt act, prosecutors allege that Ferguson and two unnamed members of Mayor Kilpatrick's Executive Protection Unit pressured and threatened a Detroit Police office into dropping citations for environmental ordinance violations against Ferguson's company.
Miller has taken a plea deal and is expected to testify.
The second indictment is a long list of charges including money laundering, mail fraud and conspiracy in connection with the Garden View Estates development project. He was arraigned on those charges in September 2010.
Ferguson is accused in a multi-million-dollar scheme to rig bids involving work at the former Detroit housing project. Federal investigators say Ferguson directed several of his associates to inflate their bids on the project so he could appear to have the lowest bid.
Stay with Action News and WXYZ.com for the latest on this breaking news.
YOU CAN READ THE NEW INDICTMENT IN THE WINDOW BELOW
Copyright 2011 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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