Former Gov. Bill Richardson (Photo by Heath Haussamen)
How soon the grand jury is expected to complete its work and decide whether to issue indictments isn’t known publicly
A federal grand jury is scheduled to meet next week as part of its ongoing investigation into an accusation that former Gov. Bill Richardson had supporters pay off a woman to keep quiet about their alleged extramarital affair.
The grand jury is expected to meet Tuesday in Albuquerque to hear testimony from witnesses, NMPolitics.net has learned. How soon the grand jury is expected to complete its work and decide whether to issue indictments isn’t known publicly.
The Santa Fe New Mexican was the first to report that the grand jury is expected to meet next week, but the newspaper didn’t report the specific day. The newspaper, like other news organizations including NMPolitics.net, has had a difficult time finding anyone close to the case to talk about it. From The New Mexican’s article:
“While rumors about the investigation are rampant, people with knowledge of how it is progressing are steering clear of making public pronouncements, meaning that no one is talking publicly about the inquiry.
“Defense lawyers representing those believed to have already testified before a federal grand jury in Albuquerque didn’t return phone calls from The New Mexican. Neither did attorneys or a spokesperson for Richardson.
“And a spokeswoman for Kenneth Gonzales, the U.S. attorney for New Mexico, said last week that she could ‘neither confirm nor deny the existence of any grand jury investigation into alleged criminal conduct.’”
The allegations
The Albuquerque Journal first reported on the federal investigation in mid November. The Wall Street Journal later reported that Richardson’s political allies allegedly “gave $250,000 to placate a woman who was considering suing the governor in 2007, exposing their alleged extramarital affair” while he was seeking the Democratic Party’s 2008 nomination for president.
And The New York Times has reported that “a sexual harassment claim was made against Mr. Richardson around 2007 by a woman connected to state government and that a settlement was discussed with one of the former governor’s personal lawyers.” The woman, The Times reported, “complained privately in 2007 that she had felt pressured into having a sexual relationship with Mr. Richardson.”
The Times reported that the $250,000 payoff “was believed to have been wired to the woman’s lawyer from a bank in Mexico.”
The woman hasn’t been named publicly. Neither have the witnesses and other potential defendants in the case, but NMPolitics.net has confirmed that Anthony Correra, a Richardson friend during his tenure as governor who has been in the news because of another scandal under investigation, was in Albuquerque in early November when the grand jury was meeting there to hear testimony in the case related to the alleged extramarital affair.
An update on the investment scandal probe
As to that other scandal in which Correra has been involved – a longstanding probe related to state investments that has already led to indictments and convictions in New York – The Wall Street Journal had an update today.
The newspaper reported that the federal investigation into the investment scandal is ongoing but authorities “have recently concentrated” on the separate investigation into the alleged payment to keep the extramarital affair secret.
From the Wall Street Journal article about the investment probe:
“A federal grand jury in Albuquerque has been looking into ‘pay to play’ complaints from former and current state officials, people familiar with the matter say. The officials contend in court filings and interviews that Mr. Richardson’s close allies steered more than $2 billion of public money into investment funds run by money managers who in turn agreed to pay millions of dollars in consulting fees to high-profile Democratic fund-raisers and other supporters of Mr. Richardson.”
The Journal also named the “key players” in that investigation:
“BILL RICHARDSON Prominent Democrat, governor of New Mexico from 2003 to 2010. Controlled the state’s investment council and pushed it to invest in private equity, hedge funds and venture-capital funds run by outside investment managers.
“ANTHONY CORRERA Former Wall Street analyst, friend and adviser to Mr. Richardson. Helped select the director of the State Investment Council and advised council members on investments. Co-hosted fund-raiser for President Barack Obama with Mr. Richardson.
“MARC CORRERA Anthony’s son. Served as treasurer of one of Mr. Richardson’s political action committees. Received millions of dollars in secret payments, designated as marketing fees, from dozens of money managers the state hired, according to civil lawsuits pending in New Mexico.
“SAUL MEYER Founder of Aldus Equity, which advised New Mexico on alternative investments. Pleaded guilty in New York in 2009 to steering pension-fund investments to managers who would pay kickbacks, and said he carried out a similar scheme in New Mexico. Awaiting sentencing.
“ALAN HEVESI Former New York State Comptroller and sole trustee of a state pension fund. Sentenced to one to four years in prison in April for official misconduct, after a probe that New Mexico officials say alerted them to ‘pay-to-play’ problems at the State Investment Council.”
The Journal quoted Richardson’s “criminal defense lawyer,” Peter Schoenburg of Santa Fe, as saying the governor “was not involved in day-to-day investment decisions” and “did not know about any payments to outside advisers.” Schoenburg was quoted as saying there has been “no finding of wrongdoing on the part of Gov. Richardson.”