The City Councilman accused of fraud, extortion, money laundering, and doctoring a receipt so he was reimbursed $177 for a $7 bagel sandwich, pleaded not guilty yesterday. After getting hit with a litany of charges in a 65-page federal indictment [PDF], Councilman Larry Seabrook (D-Bronx) was released on a $500,000 personal recognizance bond. "We have no hesitation in saying that we don't perceive that a crime was committed," said his lawyer, who claimed reimbursement checks issued to the Councilman were legitimate expenses. "That's laundering? I question that."
The 58-year-old politician, who is the first African American to serve in all three legislative branches, has been charged with helping a friend win a contract to install boilers at Yankee Stadium, then extorting the pal for $50,000. He is also accused of using discretionary funds to finance nonprofits "that city and federal authorities say ultimately did little for the communities they were supposed to aid," according to the Times, which ran the story on the front page today. Under Seabrook's control, those nonprofits purportedly paid his girlfriend, brother, sisters, and other relatives $500,000 in salaries and consulting fees, and stole money from the city using a rent scam.
The Daily News uses Seabrook's indictment to call for the elimination of slush funds, and urges the Council to strip Seabrook of his post as chairman of the Civil Rights Committee and his $10,000 lulu. Meanwhile, the Post focuses on the fact that some of the Seabrook-tied nonprofits received grants as large as $300,000 to bolster FDNY minority hiring. In an editorial, the tabloid blasts the "activist judge" who ruled that the fire department's hiring practices were racist and argues that "the larger lesson in all this is that when politicians play the guilt card regarding minority or community 'empowerment,' that card may be coming right straight off the bottom of the deck."
If found guilty of some, or all, of the charges, Seabrook could turn out serving a lengthy prison term. According to the Times, most of the offenses in the 13-count indictment carry maximum sentences of 20 years.
