Anyone who's ever noticed the stench of corruption wafting from Senate Majority Leader Pedro Espada will surely be heartened by these six sublime words, uttered by one law-enforcement official to the Post: "The problems for Espada are expanding." Can we please get that on a T-Shirt, and also used for the chorus of a fist-pumping arena rock ballad, and maybe turned into a major motion picture starring Luis Guzmán? Sources say Espada could be indicted on federal charges within the month, and you can bet he won't go down without a fight. Popcorn, anyone?
Following yesterday's raid of his non-profit health clinic in the Bronx, Espada told reporters that Attorney General Andrew Cuomo is simply "creating the impression of wrongdoing when there is no wrongdoing." The raid by FBI and IRS agents came on the morning after Cuomo filed a broad civil lawsuit against Espada and 19 other current and former Soundview officials, accusing them of "looting" at least $14 million from the nonprofit. Cuomo says much of this money was used to pay for Mr. Espada’s personal and campaign expenses, which included $20,000 in sushi deliveries to his controversial home in Mamaroneck.
"A lot of work has gone into this case," Cuomo told reporters yesterday. "The legal strategy that we decided was optimum from our point of view was to file the civil suit yesterday, lay out the entire case in a civil suit, seek certain remedies in the civil suit and commence a criminal investigation today on the same basic underlying facts and proceed with the criminal investigation jointly with our federal counterparts." The FBI would not talk about yesterday's raid on record because the affidavit in support of the warrant was sealed. The non-profit, called Soundview HealthCare Network, has received millions of dollars in federal funding.
The clinic remained open during the raid, and many patients praised the quality of the care, while also condemning Espada. "Who does he think he is, King Midas?," one neighborhood resident asked the Times. Others worried the investigation would result in the closure of the five clinics under the Soundview umbrella (Cuomo is only seeking to remove Espada and the board of directors and says he's committed to keeping Soundview open). One Soundview doctor told CBS 2, "What happens if they clean out the whole caboodle? All of a sudden Espada is gone. What's gonna happen to the clinic?" It is a sticky wicket, because the clinic could be imperiled if Espada isn't in power to secure taxpayer money for Soundview and sushi.
