NEW YORK — A longtime Democratic fundraiser believed he could get away with breaking campaign contribution laws by using actresses and other political neophytes as straw donors, prosecutor Katherine Lemire said Monday in closing statements at his corruption trial.
In a case that became an embarrassment to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and other marquee Democrats, prosecutors accused Norman Hsu, 58, of persuading clients of his fraudulent investment business to make thousands of dollars in donations so he could bypass rules limiting the amount any single individual or group can donate.
It’s alleged that once they donated, he would reimburse them.
Defense attorney Alan Seidler suggested Hsu was framed by "greedy” investors who cut non-prosecution deals with the government. He argued that his client’s decision to plead guilty to separate securities fraud charges before the trial gave him credibility.
The jury deliberated Monday afternoon without reaching a verdict.
Hsu’s trial came just days after he pleaded guilty to 10 counts of wire and mail fraud, admitting that he cheated investors of at least $20 million.
by the associated press
In a case that became an embarrassment to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and other marquee Democrats, prosecutors accused Norman Hsu, 58, of persuading clients of his fraudulent investment business to make thousands of dollars in donations so he could bypass rules limiting the amount any single individual or group can donate.
It’s alleged that once they donated, he would reimburse them.
Defense attorney Alan Seidler suggested Hsu was framed by "greedy” investors who cut non-prosecution deals with the government. He argued that his client’s decision to plead guilty to separate securities fraud charges before the trial gave him credibility.
The jury deliberated Monday afternoon without reaching a verdict.
Hsu’s trial came just days after he pleaded guilty to 10 counts of wire and mail fraud, admitting that he cheated investors of at least $20 million.
by the associated press
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