KSLA News 12 Shreveport, Louisiana |Former La. lawmaker charged in racketeering case
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Associated Press - May 22, 2009 6:04 PM ET
NEW ORLEANS (AP) - A former Louisiana state representative has been charged with participating in a scheme to pocket grant money earmarked for charitable and educational programs.
A 34-count indictment handed up Friday by a federal grand jury against former state Rep. Renee Gill Pratt also brings new charges against three relatives of former U.S. Congressman William Jefferson.
Gill Pratt's boyfriend, Mose Jefferson, already has pleaded not guilty to charges related to Friday's indictment. Mose Jefferson's sister, New Orleans tax assessor Betty Jefferson, and his niece, Angela Coleman, also are charged in the case.
The new indictment alleges the four suspects engaged in a racketeering conspiracy. Prosecutors claim they funneled federal and state grant funds through companies under their control to enrich themselves financially and politically.
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