The arrest of Prince George’s County’s top political couple is expected to be just the beginning of a period of legal turmoil for the jurisdiction, which has been plagued with corruption allegations in recent years.
Prince George’s County Executive Jack Johnson, 61, and his wife, 58-year-old Councilwoman-elect Leslie Johnson, have been charged in federal court in Greenbelt with tampering with evidence, destruction of records and aiding and abetting.
A criminal complaint against them alleges that Jack Johnson secured federal funds for an unnamed developer in exchange for payment, and ordered his wife to flush a $100,000 check down the toilet and stuff cash in her underwear to hide the evidence.
U.S. Attorney for Maryland Rod Rosenstein called the arrests “the tip of the iceberg” and said more charges were coming.
The arrests are the latest in a string of corruption investigations that have cast a shadow over Prince George’s and over Johnson’s tenure.
In September, Ulysses S. Currie, a state senator from Prince George’s, was indicted on bribery, extortion and mail-fraud charges. Former county schools chief Andre Hornsby was convicted in 2008 of steering school contracts for kickbacks. Pay-to-play accusations have surrounded Johnson, who has given contracts to supporters and tried earlier this year to maneuver a friend into a four-year job on the Planning Board.
“Prince George’s County has a terrible reputation for corruption,” said Berywn Heights Mayor Cheye Calvo. That will take a “long time to fix,” he said.
“Democrat lawmakers need to come to the realization that their role as elected officials is to serve Marylanders, not to use their title for personal gain,” said Audrey Scott, Maryland GOP chairman.
The complaint against the couple says Jack Johnson told his wife to flush the $100,000 check from a developer and hide $79,600 in cash in her bra when FBI agents knocked on their door Friday. Earlier that day, the complaint says, FBI wiretaps caught him accepting $15,000 in cash from a developer.
Jack Johnson intends to serve the last three weeks of his term and Leslie Johnson is still expected to be sworn in as a council member Dec. 6, county spokesman Jim Keary said. County government “won’t be impacted in the least,” he said.
Speaking to reporters Friday night, Johnson maintained that he was innocent.
The couple has been released from custody. Jack Johnson is on home detention with electronic monitoring.
Each could face up to 20 years in prison if convicted of all charges.
