Pa. Congressman Convicted in Charity-Tied Corruption Case

U.S. Rep. Chaka Fattah, who has represented Philadelphia in Congress for more than wo decades, was convicted Tuesday on federal racketeering-conspiracy charges stemming in part from his use of nonprofit funds to repay a political loan, The Wall Street Journal reports. A federal jury found the congressman and three associates guilty of misusing hundreds of thousands of dollars in taxpayer, charity, and campaign funds.

Mr. Fattah’s indictment last July culminated a yearslong federal investigation focused in part on the finances of an education nonprofit he founded. Prosecutors said he used donations and government grants to repay the charity a secret $1 million campaign loan he received when running for mayor of Philadelphia in 2007.

Elected to Congress in 1994, Mr. Fattah lost his re-election bid this year, falling to a Democratic rival in April’s primary. He is free on bail pending sentencing, which is scheduled for October 4.