Feds search homes of Dem. Congressman

Wed Aug 3, 7:39 PM ET

NEW ORLEANS - Federal agents searched U.S. Rep. William Jefferson homes and vehicle Wednesday, but authorities would not say what they were looking for.

Jefferson, a Democrat, said in a statement he was cooperating fully, though he said he did not know "the extent or precise nature of this investigation."

Federal agents searched Jefferson's homes in Washington, D.C., and New Orleans.

"As it is a criminal investigation we will not be able to comment any further," said Bryan Sierra, a Justice Department spokesman.

Jefferson, 58, represents a district comprising mostly the heart of New Orleans.

His name surfaced in a case involving his brother-in-law, a former state judge who was recently convicted of mail fraud in a wide-ranging probe of bail bond corruption in suburban New Orleans.

According to federal court documents, the lawmaker asked Alan Green in a recorded conversation to raise money for his daughter's successful 2003 campaign for the Legislature.

The records show that Green agreed to help.

The Louisiana Code of Judicial Conduct bars judges from asking for campaign donations on behalf of political candidates.

Jefferson has said he recalled the conversation with Green, but the request for help was familial — and not political — in nature.

"To my knowledge, nothing resulted from the conversation — the campaign did not receive any money from Judge Green or anyone who may have been prompted by him to contribute," Jefferson said.

Rep. Jalila Jefferson-Bullock, a Democrat, has said that she had no knowledge of the matter and did not receive contributions from Green, directly or indirectly.

Jefferson was elected to Congress in 1990 as the first black House member in the state since Reconstruction. He serves on the influential House Ways and Means Committee.

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