The Widening Alatorre Case

The allegations of serious financial impropriety and corruption on the part of Los Angeles City Councilman Richard Alatorre now extend well beyond the reach of the city’s Ethics Commission and the state’s Fair Political Practices Commission. At this point, it’s clear that nothing short of a thorough and extensive federal investigation will clear the pall that hangs over the city’s political landscape.

Fortunately, that commitment seems to have been made. The Internal Revenue Service’s criminal investigation division has joined the FBI’s public corruption squad in an effort to determine the following important matters: Did the powerful Eastside lawmaker violate federal laws by hiding income from the IRS? Did Alatorre accept unreported cash in exchange for backing a business deal that required City Council approval? Did Alatorre falsify information on a condo lease and home purchase?

And there is yet another federal probe, one that began with the inspector general’s office of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. The question here is whether Alatorre received improper income from contractors and others doing business with the multibillion-dollar transit agency.

The original MTA probe began months ago, but the latest investigations were sparked by recent disclosures in The Times alleging suspicious and labyrinthine efforts to help Alatorre unburden himself of a money-losing condominium so he could get a mortgage for a new home. Subsequently, Alatorre’s former executive secretary at his council office described questionable cash transactions.

There should not be undue haste in getting to the bottom of these troubling allegations. The stakes are too high to allow any sloppiness. Alatorre’s positions as chairman of the council’s Budget and Finance Committee and a prominent member of the MTA board of directors have meant that few major city and transit deals move without his involvement and support. That’s the cloud that will follow the city’s business until this matter is resolved.