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Former Anaheim Mayor Harish “Harry” Singh Sidhu will plead guilty to federal felony charges for obstructing an FBI corruption investigation and for making false statements to FBI agents, the Department of Justice announced Wednesdsay.
Sidhu’s case is tied to the sale of Angel Stadium to a company controlled by Angels owner Arte Moreno and Sidhu’s role with the team negotiating the sale. With his plea, Sidhu admits to lying to FBI agents, telling them he did not expect to receive any benefits when the sale closed, but then later being recorded mentioning a $1M campaign contribution.
Sidhu also destroyed an email in which he shared confidential information about the city’s negotiations with a consultant for the Angels, the Los Angeles Times reported.
The process of selling the stadium for approximately $320M went on for years but in mid-2022, the sale was halted by an Orange County Superior Court judge granting a request by the state attorney general. The request referred to an ongoing FBI inquiry into the mayor’s actions, the Times reported.
“It is important to note both the Plea Agreement along with the City’s investigation showed no evidence of any wrongdoing by the Angels Organization,” an Angels spokesperson told the Times, though Voice of OC noted city of Anaheim investigators said the Angels refused to be interviewed or cooperate with their probe.
Sidhu will face a maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison for the obstruction of justice, up to 20 years in federal prison for the wire fraud charge, and up to five years in federal prison for each of two false statement counts.
Two other members of the small and powerful group that federal investigators say pulled the strings of city government in Anaheim have entered guilty pleas, though neither has been sentenced, according to the Times.
Former Anaheim Chamber of Commerce President Todd Ament pleaded guilty to several felonies last year, while campaign consultant Melahat Rafiei pleaded guilty earlier this year to one count of attempted wire fraud.
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