Former Democratic Rep. Chaka Fattah sentenced to 10 years in prison
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
Former Rep. Chaka Fattah (D-Penn.) was sentenced Monday to 10 years in prison, almost six months after being convicted on federal corruption charges. Fattah had faced up to 22 years behind bars for his crimes, after he was found guilty in June of racketeering, money laundering, and fraud, in relation to a scheme to pay back an illegal $1 million campaign loan.
Prosecutors alleged Fattah got into financial trouble during a costly failed bid for the Philadelphia mayoralship in 2007, saying Fattah took an illegal loan of $1 million and then used federal grant money and charitable funds to pay it back. Prosecutors also alleged Fattah accepted gifts from a wealthy friend, in exchange for seeking an ambassadorship for that friend.
Fattah has maintained his innocence throughout the ordeal, though he did resign from Congress two days after his June conviction. He will begin his sentence Jan. 25, 2017.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Kimberly Alters is the news editor at TheWeek.com. She is a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.
