Duke Cunningham Expanded Universe of Corruption Update

Brian Zick

Paul Kiel at TPM Muckraker passes along this news: One of the hanging threads of the Duke Cunningham case has been the fate of Thomas Kontogiannis, the Greek businessman implicated in Cunningham's plea for bribing the congressman. Today, The San Diego Union-Tribune reports that Kontogiannis actually pled guilty back in February, but that the documents had been under seal until now: Paul also notes, although it remains uncertain what benefit Kontogiannis gained from his bribes, that prosecutors are speculating he used his connection with Cunningham to meet world leaders, including President Bush and Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah, who is now king of Saudi Arabia.

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