This is some pretty damaging testimony for Jefferson. The FBI recorded Jefferson taking $100,000 in marked FBI bills from a business woman who was cooperating with the FBI. But this $100,000 payment is in addition to the FBI money, and was apparently made initially without the knowledge of the FBI. It may undercut some of the defense’s claim that the case was created by the FBI.
By Bruce Alpert
The Times-Picayune
ALEXANDRIA, Va. — A former Nigerian telecommunications executive testified Wednesday that his former business partners delivered $100,000 to then-Rep. William Jefferson after the Democratic congressman requested a percentage of profits and revenue in a joint venture with a Kentucky technology company he was promoting.
Dumebi Kachikwu, a part-owner of Nigeria Digital Television when Jefferson was trying to broker a deal between the company and Louisville-based iGate Inc., delivered the most damaging testimony yet in the trial, now in its third week, in which Jefferson faces charges of bribery, racketeering and violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
Jefferson’s attorneys are expected to cross-examine Kachikwu when the trial resumes today.
