Abramoff Investigation Is "Ever Widening", "The More You Look At It, The More People Are Involved"...

Bloomberg Jonathan D. Salant November 29, 2005 at 12:11 PM

Lobbyist Jack Abramoff sought the help of U.S. Interior Department officials to save the job of an Indian leader under fire for $37 million in fees his tribe paid Abramoff and a partner, according to interviews and e-mails.

The department's Bureau of Indian Affairs last year ruled that Lovelin Poncho should remain head of the Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana. The bureau acted after Poncho sought help from Abramoff, who called then-Deputy Interior Secretary J. Steven Griles and other Interior Department officials, according to a person familiar with the issue.

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