Former US House Speaker Dennis Hastert has pleaded guilty to a federal financial crime in a hush-money case stemming from allegations of sexual misconduct, marking the dramatic downfall of a once powerful politician.
In exchange for the guilty plea, federal prosecutors recommended a sentence of zero to six months imprisonment, although the judge in the case could potentially sentence Hastert to up to five years in prison and fine him £180,000.
The plea deal may allow Hastert - who led the House of Representatives from 1999 to 2007 - to receive a light sentence. However, embarrassing information about the case could still emerge in the sentencing process, because the judge will want to study Hastert's past when deciding on a sentence.
Hastert, 73, pleaded guilty to one count of "structuring" - withdrawing funds from bank accounts in amounts below £6,000 to evade bank reporting rules on large cash movements. Those rules exist to detect money laundering.
He told District Judge Thomas Durkin he knew what he was doing was wrong in a hearing in the federal courthouse in Chicago that lasted a little over 20 minutes.
"I didn't want them to know how I intended to spend the money," he said, reading from a brief prepared statement.
Hastert, flanked by two attorneys, stood before the judge and answered a series of questions to indicate he understood what he was doing. He spoke loudly and clearly at the judge's request.
In the plea agreement he admitted to paying £1.2 million in cash to an individual he had known for decades, in order to buy that person's silence and to compensate for misconduct toward that individual.
The indictment and the plea do not mention sexual misconduct, but unnamed law enforcement officials have told media the past misconduct was sexual and involved someone Hastert knew when he was a high school teacher and coach in his hometown of Yorkville, Illinois, in the 1960s and 1970s.
A separate charge of lying to the FBI was dismissed.
Hastert, stooped, white-haired and wearing a gray suit, remains free on bond pending a sentencing hearing in February.
Hastert and his lawyers declined to comment to reporters on leaving the courthouse. The former speaker has not spoken publicly since his indictment in May.
In the plea agreement Hastert admitted he reached an agreement in 2010 with the individual who was a victim of his misconduct, to pay a total of £2.8m in hush money.
From 2010-2012 Hastert made 15 withdrawals of £30,000 each from a number of banks, meeting with the individual every few months to pay the person an instalment.
In April 2012, bank employees asked Hastert for an explanation of the withdrawals and told him they had to report large transactions. After that he started to withdraw in lower increments.
Hastert was the longest-serving Republican speaker in the history of the House. He left Congress in 2007 and became a lobbyist and consultant.
After his indictment, Hastert resigned from the Dickstein Shapiro lobbying firm in Washington and from the boards of exchange operator CME Group Inc and REX American Resources Corp.
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