George S. May Business Blog

Democratic consultant Hank Morris faces charges that could land him a 300+ year sentence

Democratic political consultant Hank Morris, left, along with a top lieutenant to the former New York Comptroller Alan Hevesi were indicted Thursday in a scheme to trade lucrative investments in the state pension fund for more than $30 million in kickbacks, gifts and campaign contributions, the New York Post reported.

The 123-count indictment against Hank Morris and former state pension-fund manager, whose name is David Loglisci, comes out of a two-year pay-to-play probe by state Attorney General Andrew Cuomo.

The indictment charges that Morris used his access to the Comptroller’s Office to direct more than $4 billion from the pension fund to private equity firms, venture-capital funds and businesses in exchange for bogus “placement fees” and other payoffs.

In exchange for signing off on the dirty deals, the indictment charges Loglisci received hundreds of thousands of dollars in payoffs, including some $290,000 to help his brother film and distribute a poorly received comedy, “Chooch,” about two Italian-Americans.

The state pension fund now valued at $122 billion serves more than a million retirees, beneficiaries and contributors.

Morris and Loglisci turned themselves in at 8:30 a.m. and were taken to a Manhattan courtroom within two hours. Morris, alone, is facing a maximum of 340 years in prison. Loglisci’s sentence could be up to 193 years. Both have pled not guilty.

Cuomo added that in the next few weeks we should see “several cases and developments” Cuomo is likely referring to, in part, two anonymous co-conspirators, including one high-ranking Hevesi official who allegedly took hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes, including cash and rent payments for his girlfriend. That man, although officially unconfirmed is rumored to be Hevesi’s former chief of staff, Jack Chartier.

As details emerge, we will continue to post updates.

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