COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) – Imprisoned former Ohio House Speaker Larry Houseder was charged Monday with 10 new felonies, including one that bars him from ever holding public office in the state. .
The new charges brought by the state extend action in what was already the largest corruption case in state history.
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Householder, 64, is involved in a $60 million bribery scheme funded by Akron-based FirstEnergy Corp. in exchange for the passage of a $1 billion bailout for two nuclear power plants owned by one of its subsidiaries. He was convicted of extortion in June for his role in orchestrating the attack. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison and is serving his sentence at the Elkton Federal Correctional Facility near Youngstown, but he is appealing his sentence.
Former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder has been charged with 10 new felonies. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File)
On Monday, a Cuyahoga County grand jury indicted Householder on additional charges, including misappropriation of campaign funds, ethics violations and theft in official capacity that would prevent him from serving in government.
“This lawsuit will hold Mr. Householder accountable for his actions under state law, and as a result, he will be permanently barred from holding public office in Ohio,” Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said in announcing the charges. I expect that it will happen,” he said. “There is a state penalty for state crimes, and if he is found guilty, there will definitely be no chance for the Comeback Kid to come back.”
In addition to serving as the county office, the head of the household also served two terms as chairman. A message seeking comment was left with his attorney.
The state indictment alleges that Householder misused campaign funds to pay for criminal defense in federal cases and filed fiduciary and debt obligations in required ethics filings, including in connection with the relief bill known as House Bill 6. The lawsuit alleges that the company failed to disclose the gift. Specifically, the householder is charged with one count of office theft, two counts of aggravated theft, one count of telecommunications fraud, one count of money laundering, and five counts of falsifying records. .
Two fired FirstEnergy executives (former CEO Chuck Jones and senior vice president Michael Dowling) and Sam Randazzo, Ohio’s former top utility regulator, were released to Ohio last month. He was indicted on a total of 27 charges as part of a state investigation led by the State Organized Crime Task Force. All three pleaded not guilty.
In July 2020, landlord, lobbyist and former Ohio Republican Party chairman Matt Borges and three others were indicted on racketeering charges. Mr. Borges was convicted along with Mr. Landlord last summer and sentenced to five years in prison. He also appealed.
Lobbyist Juan Cespedes and Household’s top political strategist Jeffrey Longstreth pleaded guilty in October 2020 and cooperated with the government’s prosecution. The third person arrested was Neil Clark, a longtime lobbyist for the Ohio Legislature, who committed suicide in March 2021 after pleading not guilty.
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Generation Now, the underground finance group that raised funds for FirstEnergy, also pleaded guilty to racketeering charges in February 2021.
They all used $60 million in secretly funded FirstEnergy cash to help elect Householder’s chosen Republican candidate to the House in 2018, before he was elected speaker in January 2019. He was accused of using it to support the That money was then used to win passage of the Dirty Energy Bill. and to conduct a dirty tricks campaign to prevent the repeal referendum from reaching the vote.
