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Nov 18, 2008 5:58 pm US/Eastern
Wilkerson Indicted On 8 Attempted Extortion Counts
BOSTON (AP) ―
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This photo from the U.S. Attorney's Office shows Wilkerson allegedly stuffing bribe money under her sweater.
U.S. Attorney's Office
State Sen. Dianne Wilkerson, photographed by the FBI allegedly
stuffing bribe money under her sweater, has been indicted on eight counts of attempted extortion.
Read the indictmentProsecutors filed a criminal complaint in October alleging Wilkerson accepted cash payments between June 2007 and October 2008. The formal grand jury indictment was handed up Tuesday.
The indictment also seeks the forfeiture of the more than $23,500 in payments allegedly made to the Boston Democrat by undercover agents and a cooperating witness during the 18-month investigation.
If convicted, Wilkerson faces up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine on each of the eight charges.
Wilkerson, who is free on a $50,000 unsecured bond, has said there is "more to this story."
A call to her lawyer was not immediately returned Tuesday.
Wilkerson lost her re-election bid in the September primary to fellow Democrat Sonia Chang-Diaz.
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