Ex-NY Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver indicted on 3 charges
Source: AP
NEW YORK (AP) Former New York State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver was indicted Thursday on three charges after his arrest last month in a federal bribery case.
The indictment was returned in Manhattan federal court, where he appeared last month briefly when he was freed on bail just a day after sharing the stage with Gov. Andrew Cuomo during his State of the State address. The charges are honest services mail fraud, honest services wire fraud and extortion under the color of his official duties.
"Our client is not guilty. We can now begin to fight for his total vindication. We intend to do that fighting where it should be done in court," Silver's lawyers, Joel Cohen and Steve Molo, said in a statement. Silver has said he is confident he will be vindicated.
Silver's arrest came after he had led the Assembly for over 20 years, becoming one of the most powerful and savvy figures in New York state politics.
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