DOJ: Another Bill of Information Filed in Baton Rouge, Louisiana in ‘Operation Illegal Motion’

For Immediate Release
December 11, 2009 United States Attorney's Office
Middle District of Louisiana
Contact: (225) 389-0443

Another Bill of Information Filed in Baton Rouge, Louisiana in ‘Operation Illegal Motion’

BATON ROUGE, LA—United States Attorney David R. Dugas announced today that SAMUEL L. WILSON, SR., age 62, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, was charged in a Bill of Information with conspiracy to violate the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) and with use of an interstate facility in aid of racketeering for allegedly accepting or extorting bribes from individuals with pending criminal charges in the Baton Rouge City Court, and then sharing the proceeds of the bribe or extortion with a prosecutor who would arrange for the matters to be dismissed or otherwise “fixed.” The initial appearance and arraignment on these charges have not yet been scheduled.

The charges against WILSON resulted from 'Operation Illegal Motion,' an ongoing investigation conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the United States Attorney’s Office with the cooperation of the Louisiana Office of Inspector General; the Louisiana State Police; the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigative Division; the Department of Homeland Security, Office of Inspector General; and the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality, Criminal Investigations Division. The cases are being prosecuted by Deputy Criminal Chief Corey R. Amundson and Assistant United States Attorney M. Patricia Jones.

WILSON is the eighth individual charged as a result of Operation Illegal Motion. Seven individuals have previously pleaded guilty to charges arising out of the investigation.

WILSON faces a maximum sentence of twenty (20) years in prison and a fine of $250,000 on the Conspiracy to Violate RICO charge and a maximum sentence of five (5) years in prison and a fine of $250,000 on the racketeering charge.

For further information, contact David R. Dugas, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Louisiana, or Lyman Thornton, First Assistant U.S. Attorney, at (225) 389-0443.

NOTE: A Bill of Information is a determination by the U.S. Attorney’s Office that there is probable cause to believe that an offense has been committed by the defendant. The defendant, of course, is presumed innocent until and unless he is proven guilty at trial.