OHIO – A scandal that included a gold piece of Legislation has sentenced a former Ohio House Speaker to 20 years in prison and an Ohio Lobbiest to 5 Years
In the wake of the 20-year sentence of Householder, an Ohio lobbyist who was also the former chair of the Ohio Republican Party was sentenced to on Friday to 5 years.
In 2020 Former House speaker Larry Householder was arrested and charged with a federal racketeering conspiracy involving approximately $60 million paid to a 501(c)(4) entity to pass and uphold a billion-dollar nuclear plant bailout of Ohio tax monies.
Larry Householder, 61, of Glenford, Ohio, and the enterprise conspired to violate the racketeering statute through honest services wire fraud, receipt of millions of dollars in bribes, and money laundering.
Three other individuals were also arrested and charged. They include:
Jeffrey Longstreth, 44, of Columbus, Householder’s longtime campaign and political strategist;
Neil Clark, 67, of Columbus, a lobbyist who owns and operates Grant Street Consultants and previously served as budget director for the Ohio Republican Caucus; and
Juan Cespedes, 40, of Columbus, a multi-client lobbyist.
Other people who were investigated were Lt Gov. Husted, Dan McCarthy, and Mike Dawson, all were proven to be above board in the situation.
FirstEnergy still faces lawsuits but admitted to a 4.3 million dollar bribe for favorable treatment.
“Between employing federal criminals to the political back-scratching that led to his appointment to the Supreme Court, it’s clear that Joe Deters is unfit to serve on the state’s highest court. Joe Deters is only serving on the Supreme Court because of his political connections – connections that are sketchy at best and criminal at worst. Ohioans deserve a Supreme Court Justice that upholds the rule of law, not one whose friends and close advisors are constantly breaking it,” said Matt Keyes, spokesperson for the Ohio Democratic Party.