Moreno-Espinosa Indictment Revised

A federal grand jury Tuesday returned an updated indictment against Santa Ana Councilman Ted R. Moreno and two others in an alleged scheme to extort campaign contributions and launder the money in the city’s 1996 elections.

The revised charges come after prosecutors announced in U.S. District Court in Santa Ana last month that they would be dropping one of the extortion counts against Moreno.

The new 27-count indictment did not substantially change the overall allegations against Moreno, 32, former Santa Ana Councilman Tony Espinoza, 31, and 1996 council candidate Hector Olivares, 32. The three are accused of conspiring to illegally fund a slate of candidates to take over the City Council and then lying to federal investigators.

Thursday’s indictment, however, expands the accusation of Olivares’ alleged participation in the complex scheme, saying he and Moreno jointly conspired to hide campaign contributions. Moreno still faces a single count of extorting $31,000 from a local gasoline station owner for favorable votes on a liquor permit.

“They defrauded the citizens of Santa Ana,” said Assistant U.S. Atty. John Hueston, who is prosecuting the case. The trial, originally scheduled to begin earlier this month, has been postponed to July at the earliest.

The three defendants have strongly maintained their innocence. Olivares’ attorney, John Paul Martin, said Tuesday he could not comment on the new indictment because he had not yet received it.