Legislator Guilty of Selling Vote in FBI Sting
A jury Thursday convicted a state lawmaker of selling his vote on parimutuel betting for $4,300, ending the first trial stemming from an FBI undercover sting labeled Operation Lost Trust.
The sting so far has resulted in indictments charging 10 legislators with bribery. Four have resigned and pleaded guilty. One of the 10 lawmakers pleaded guilty to drug charges earlier this month, as did a lobbyist.
The U.S. District Court jury convicted state Rep. Luther Taylor, 40, a Democrat from Columbia, on all six counts against him of violating the Hobbs Act, a federal anti-bribery law. An indictment accused him of accepting five separate bribes and of conspiring to solicit those bribes in exchange for his support of a parimutuel betting bill.
Taylor voted for the bill in committee during the last legislative session. The bill never made it to the state House or Senate.
The conviction carries a maximum penalty of 120 years in prison and a $1.5-million fine. No sentencing date was set.
Videotapes and lobbyist Ron Cobb dominated the prosecution’s case. Cobb, a former Democratic House member who had become a lobbyist, testified that he worked under cover for the FBI after getting caught trying to buy cocaine from federal agents.
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