Free Republic

The former assemblyman Anthony S. Seminerio, who prosecutors said took more than $1 million in payments from people and organizations doing business with the state, was sentenced to six years in prison by a federal judge in Manhattan on Thursday. For 30 years Mr. Seminerio, a Democrat, cultivated a streetwise persona and the trappings of crude political clout while representing the 38th District in southwest Queens. * * * The judge also chided him for his “refusal to acknowledge the breadth and depth of your criminal conduct.” Mr. Seminerio, 74, is among more than a dozen state lawmakers who have...

Veteran Assemblyman Anthony Seminerio was indicted for fraud yesterday after plea negotiations in his corruption case apparently broke down. The Manhattan federal court indictment boosted to $1 million the amount of cash the Queens Democrat is charged with collecting through an eight-year, influence-peddling scheme. In early September, federal authorities charged that Seminerio pocketed money in exchange for access to Albany lawmakers. Payments allegedly went to a bogus consulting outfit linked to the Assemblyman.

A federal grand jury indicted a state assemblyman on Wednesday, charging that he effectively put his legislative office up for sale by demanding cash payments for delivering state business. A criminal complaint filed in September alleged a bold fraud scheme in which the assemblyman, Anthony S. Seminerio, incorporated his own consulting firm to conceal the illegal payments. On Wednesday, a grand jury found enough evidence to indict Mr. Seminerio on one count of mail fraud “to solicit and receive a stream of corrupt payments.