LINCOLN — A federal judge in Washington, D.C., won’t let former U.S. Rep. Jeff Fortenberry, R-Neb., stall his trial in hopes that the next leaders of the Justice Department will drop the felony charges prosecutors have re-filed against him.

Judge Trevor McFadden denied Fortenberry’s motion to delay his second criminal trial beyond Feb. 3, when he is set to face allegations that he lied to the FBI about knowing that foreign funds were raised illegally for his congressional campaign.

Fortenberry, who lives in Lincoln, had asked the judge for a two-month delay so a new GOP appointee would be able to re-evaluate his case. Prosecutors objected to the motion. McFadden denied the request this week, writing that he would only consider delay requests agreed to by both sides. 

A federal jury in California found Fortenberry guilty in 2022 of three felonies tied to concealing foreign campaign donations and lying to federal agents about whether he knew the donations were illegal. The verdict was based partly on recorded conversations between Fortenberry and the FBI and Fortenberry and an FBI informant.

Fortenberry, who represented Nebraska’s 1st Congressional District,  was sentenced to probation and fined.

Fortenberry and his legal team had argued that he was prosecuted for political reasons by the Justice Department under President Joe Biden.  Prosecutors have denied the allegation, pointing to corruption investigations of congressional Democrats.

The investigation of the 2016 Fortenberry fundraiser began during President-elect Donald Trump’s first term. Fortenberry was charged during the Biden administration. Trump and some of his allies in Congress, including Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, contend Fortenberry was mistreated.

Nigerian-Lebanese billionaire Gilbert Chagoury was the source of the foreign money given to Fortenberry’s campaign, which an FBI informant told Fortenberry in a 2018 call after the L.A. fundraiser. Fortenberry claimed ignorance to the agents who visited him in 2019.

Chagoury admitted making the illegal donations and was fined $1.8 million. Fortenberry had supported the mission of Chagoury’s organization, In Defense of Christians, which protects Christians and other religious minorities in the Middle East.

Fortenberry resigned from office and was replaced in a special election by then-State Sen. Mike Flood.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned his first conviction because he was charged in California, where the fundraiser took place, instead of in Nebraska or Washington, where he allegedly lied.

The new charges focus on lying to or misleading federal agents and falsifying or concealing material facts. Fortenberry donated the money to charity in 2019 after being confronted by the federal government about its illegality.

This story was published by Nebraska Examiner, an editorially independent newsroom providing a hard-hitting, daily flow of news. Read the original article: https://nebraskaexaminer.com/briefs/judge-wont-delay-former-u-s-rep-fort...