and last updated 2021-01-28 18:49:20-05
CINCINNATI â Prosecutors call it a secret slush fund where Cincinnati City Councilman P.G. Sittenfeld deposited $40,000 from undercover FBI agents, allegedly in exchange for his support on a Downtown development project.
But Sittenfeldâs attorney, Charlie Rittgers, said the PAC at the heart of the governmentâs corruption case is legal, transparent and follows Federal Election Commission rules.
What U.S. District Court Judge Douglas Cole believes about Sittenfeldâs political action committee, which is named the Progress and Growth PAC, could determine his fate.
Sittenfeld, a Democrat, had been considered the front-runner to win this yearâs Cincinnati mayoral race until the FBI arrested him in November. A 20-page indictment charged Sittenfeld with two counts of honest services wire fraud, two counts of bribery and two counts of attempted extortion.