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U.S. Department of Justice
Federal Bureau of Investigation
In Reply, Please Refer to
FileNo.
Riverside, CA 92507
March 10, 2006
PREDICATION
CORRUPTION OF FEDERAL PUBLIC OFFICIALS
LEGISLATIVE BRANCH
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Investigation was predicated on a referral from the
Department of Justice, Public Integrity Section, and opened on
March 10, 2006. Allegations, brought forward by the Citizens for
Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) and a number of
recent news media items, suggest: 1) an inappropriate b6 -2
relatj onshj p exj sts between Rep .Terry r.ewi s (R-CA) ""1...;;;...;;---------.,,b
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and 2) Lewis' illegal fundraising from a New York Hedge Fund.
As a way of background, Lewis is a Member of the U.S.
House of Representatives representing 41st
Congressional District. He first won his seat in 1978. Before
becoming the Chair of the House Appropriations Committee in 2005,
he was the Chair of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee.
rece1ve
clients
ew1s comm1
constituents
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the Defense ____ ....., b7c -2,4
identified as
In addition,
office
staff members Lewis'
the movement
Former Lewis
In addition, Cerberus Capital Management (Cerberus) is
a New York private equity fund. Cerberus raised over $100,000
for Lewis' Future Leaders PAC one day before the House passed a
This document contains neither recommendations nor conclusions of the FBI. It is the property of the
FBI and it and ito not to be
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58C-LA-244141
defense spending bill that preserved $160 million for a Navy
project in which Cerberus held a financial stake. Lewis had
previously criticized the project.
ANTICIPATED INVESTIGATION/STRATEGY
A proposed three-month investigative strategy as
follows:
Due to the sensitivity of the issues and potential
ramifications that a public corruption investigation can have on
reputations, it is anticipated the first step will be the
gathering of open source information to compile a full background
on all subjects. Third-party subpoenas will be issued! I
I !Following this period of
information gathering, limited interviews are anticipated with
I I
1wno may
Cl:-r-I"Cl.,.. .... 1 ..... y-, subpoenas
will be served onl I
I I In add1t1on,
subpoenas will be served onl
Given this strategy, this matter has been opened as a
Full Investigation. Lewis has not been named in the title in
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efforts to keep the existence of this investi ation unknown from b6 -1
those without a "need to know." SSA PC/GFU, b7c -1
FBIHQ, was contacted on 2/24/2006, an these
actions.
PROSECUTIVE OPINION
The US Attorney's Office in Los Angeles has assigned
AUSAI I an experienced and highly-relarded public
corruption prosecutor. On Februa.ry 24, 2006, AUSA I
provided an opinion regarding the merits of this invest1gat1on
and coordinated investigative strategy between his office and the
FBI.
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CREW /Lewis-4
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