HUDSON COUNTY — Professing his innocence in charges filed against him during the FBI corruption sting investigation last year, former Assemblyman Louis Manzo will hold a press conference this Monday to unveil what he claims is wrongdoing by the U.S. Attorney’s office.
“I’ll be presenting evidence of misconduct by the U.S. Attorney’s office,” he told the Hudson Reporter newspapers on Thursday. “This is corruption. That cannot be ignored.”
Manzo was one of 44 officials and religious leaders charged in a massive federal sting operation last year in which he allegedly took a bribe from real estate developer-turned-FBI informant Solomon Dwek.
Manzo claims that the attorneys who investigated him violated the law by contributing to the political campaign of Republican Gov. Christopher Christie at a time when they were prosecuting a federal case against Manzo and others, a case that ultimately benefited Christie’s campaign.
“They had a stake in the election,” he said. “They should have recused themselves.”
Mazno represented Jersey City and Bayonne as an assemblyman. Last spring, he ran for Jersey City mayor but lost to current mayor Jerramiah Healy.
For the outcome of the press conference, check out www.hudsonreporter.com next week.