US congressman guilty of corruption

The US Congress has convicted one of its longest-standing members, Charles Rangel, a Democrat from New York, on 11 counts of financial and fundraising misconduct.

The US Congress has convicted one of its longest-standing members, Charles Rangel, a Democrat from New York, on 11 counts of financial and fundraising misconduct.

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An eight-member House of Representatives ethics panel said there was “clear and convincing evidence” that Rangel, 80, was guilty of all but two of the 13 charges he faced.

Rangel’s convictions include improperly soliciting millions of dollars from private firms and lobbyists doing business with the committee he chaired to fund a centre in his name at a New York college, failing to disclose hundreds of thousands of dollars in income and assets and failing to pay income tax on rental income from a villa he owns.

The verdicts were unanimous, meaning that Rangel’s Democratic colleagues voted against him at the end of a two-year investigation.

Rangel, who has represented a New York constituency for 40 years, will face a second hearing to decide on his punishment, which could range from a letter of condemnation or a fine, to expulsion from the House of Representatives, although that is unlikely.