The Anchorage Daily News [1] compiled a one-stop Q & A on the corruption scandals swirling around a number of the Alaska's elected officials. It provides a good background on the players -- and the potential crimes. Here's one key section that should be of interest:
Others connected with the investigations
- U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens [2]. He has represented Alaska since 1968 and is the most senior Senate Republican in history. Stevens has come under political attack recently from fiscal conservatives and others for his use of earmarks to direct programs and money to Alaska. Some of the earmarks benefited his son Ben and a former aide, Trevor McCabe, and their clients. Veco’s Allen oversaw a construction project in 2000 that doubled the size of Stevens’ Girdwood home, and investigators have been trying to learn if at least some of that work was an improper gift.
- Former state Sen. Ben Stevens [3]. In his plea agreement, Allen admitted making improper payments of $243,250 to “State Senator B” — an unmistakable reference to Ben Stevens, the former state Senate president. Ben Stevens’ office was searched in the August 2006 raids and was later visited again by FBI agents seeking information about his fishery interests and benefits he may have received from legislation written by his father. He was paid hundreds of thousands of dollars as a consultant for various commercial fishing companies and groups, and chaired a federally funded panel, created in an earmark by his father, that awarded grants to some of those entities.
- U.S. Rep. Don Young. [4] Alaska’s sole U.S. representative since 1973, Young has been widely reported to be under investigation over his own ties to Veco and use of earmarks, although details of what is being examined are unclear. Since 1989, he has received more than $212,000 in campaign donations from Allen, Smith and other Veco executives, making the company by far his top contributor. One of Young’s aides has pleaded guilty in the Jack Abramoff lobbying scandal, and Young himself has ties to the lobbyist. Young has come under political attack for adding earmarks to transportation legislation that would benefit a Wisconsin trucking company and a Florida real estate mogul, both of whom contributed to his campaigns. Young recently reported spending $262,000 in campaign funds on unspecified legal fees during the first six months of 2007.
- Trevor McCabe [5]. Seward native and former legislative director to Ted Stevens, he became partner in a consulting business with Ben Stevens, and lobbied Congress on behalf of a Southeast salmon group that obtained federal funds from Ted Stevens. An attorney and lobbyist, McCabe has represented other seafood interests as well. With two partners, McCabe sold property to the Alaska SeaLife Center in Seward at a price substantially above its appraisal after Ted Stevens provided the money in an earmark.
- Frank Prewitt. Former state corrections commissioner who became a consultant to Cornell Cos., a private prison company that wanted to build a large prison in Alaska (at one time teaming with Veco). Prewitt was being investigated by the FBI in 2004 when he agreed to work for the government to root out corrupt legislators and lobbyists. He passed out money and recorded conversations, providing the foundation for the Anderson case.
- Sens. John Cowdery, R-Anchorage [6], and Donald Olson, D-Nome, also had their offices searched in August 2006, but have not been charged.