Last of 3 O.C. GOP Representatives in House Bank Scandal Are Cleared : Inquiry: Rohrabacher says he’s ‘squeaky clean.’ Identical letters sent earlier to Dannemeyer, Packard by special counsel.

The special Justice Department lawyer investigating the House bank scandal on Wednesday formally cleared the last of three Orange County congressmen who overdrew their House accounts.

Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Huntington Beach), who had eight overdrafts, released a letter from special counsel Malcolm R. Wilkey that said, “There is no basis for pursuing a further inquiry regarding possible criminal violations concerning your account.”

“I’m more than squeaky clean,” Rohrabacher said.

Two weeks ago, Wilkey sent identical letters to Reps. William E. Dannemeyer (R-Fullerton), who overdrew his House account 26 times, and Ron Packard (R-Oceanside), who had four overdrafts. Packard represents South County.

Orange County’s other representatives, Christopher Cox (R-Newport Beach) and Robert K. Dornan (R-Garden Grove), had no overdrafts, according to a report issued last spring by the House ethics committee.

Wilkey so far has written exonerating letters to at least 192 of the 276 sitting House members who had overdrawn their accounts at least once during the 39-month period ending in October, 1991. Nine members of the California delegation remain subjects of the inquiry.

The House bank scandal exploded a year ago when Roll Call, the biweekly newspaper that covers Capitol Hill, reported that the House Bank--really a check-cashing service--had routinely covered members’ overdrawn accounts with their colleagues’ funds.

In effect, the bank provided free, short-term loans to members of Congress, some of whom racked up hundreds of overdrafts in a three-year period. Many members, on the other hand, have contended that the bank’s sloppy accounting practices caused many of the overdrafts. And, they said, bank officials never made a concerted effort to clean up the bank’s procedures.

Earlier this year, Atty. Gen. William P. Barr named Wilkey, a retired federal judge, to investigate possible criminal acts stemming from the bank’s operations. Wilkey promptly subpoenaed the bank records of all House members. After an emotional debate, the House voted 347-64 to provide the documents.

In an interview Wednesday, Rohrabacher said Wilkey’s investigators went far beyond an inquiry into his eight overdrafts.

“I think what they’ve done is taken every (check) that was over $1,000 and looked at it to see what type of people are involved in financial transactions with the congressman, and they’re taking a look at it to see if it’s OK,” Rohrabacher said.

The congressman said Wilkey’s office specifically questioned him about a check he had used to purchase a U.S. Treasury security, and had asked him to document the source of a substantial deposit to his account. Rohrabacher was in the process of purchasing a condominium when the deposit was made, he said. Neither transaction involved an overdraft, he added.

“They were asking about major checks that I had written, and they want to make sure they know who is on the opposite side of every transaction,” he said.

Despite the questioning, Rohrabacher said he has no problem with Wilkey’s approach.

“It’s not improper for a government agency to say, now that we have (these bank records) here, we ought to look through the rest of the stuff, and if they find someone who was doing something improper, fine.”

A spokesman for Wilkey confirmed that investigators are not confining their inquiry to checks that specifically caused overdrafts.

“This is a responsible and thorough investigation that goes to much more than just examining those transactions known to be overdrafts,” the spokesman said. “That is part of the special counsel’s mission.”

Dannemeyer said he was not asked specific questions about his account by Wilkey’s investigators. The congressman added that he doubts that Wilkey’s office will be able to obtain any criminal convictions in the bank case.

“I was a deputy district attorney for 2 1/2 years, and I’ve tried a lot of criminal cases,” said Dannemeyer, who is leaving Congress in January.

“The reality is that the House bank was nothing more than a (money) pooling arrangement, and any prosecutor who attempted to show that somebody was defrauding somebody . . . will be laughed out of court.”

Times staff writer Ronald J. Ostrow contributed to this story.