July 30, 2007 - Reuters
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The FBI and IRS have searched the home
of Republican Sen. Ted Stevens in a ski resort in Alaska as
part of an investigation into his links with an oil-services
company, officials said on Monday.
"The FBI and IRS are conducting a court-authorized search
warrant in Girdwood, Alaska," an FBI spokesman said in
Washington, but gave no further details.
The Alaskan politician, the longest-serving Republican in
Senate history, issued a statement saying: "My attorneys
were advised this morning that federal agents wished to search
my home in Girdwood in connection with an ongoing investigation.
"I continue to believe this investigation should proceed
to its conclusion without any appearance that I have attempted
to influence the outcome," the statement said.
Girdwood is about 40 miles south of Anchorage, the state's
largest city.
Stevens is the subject of a grand-jury investigation into
his links with managers of VECO Corp., the state's largest
oil-services company, as well as numerous unrelated fisheries
matters.
In May, Bill Allen, then the chief executive of VECO, along
with a vice president, Rick Smith, pleaded guilty to several
federal corruption charges. The two admitted paying over $400,000
to bribe Alaska lawmakers.
Allen had been a financial supporter of Stevens' campaigns
and a partner with him on a race horse. He also oversaw the
a project to remodel Stevens' Girdwood home in 2000, vetting
bills and construction work.
The Anchorage Daily News has reported that contractors who
worked on the remodeling of Stevens' home had their records
subpoenaed by the federal grand jury.
Stevens is the former chairman of the powerful Senate Appropriations
Committee. During his tenure as chairman of the committee,
Stevens developed a reputation of delivering federal funds
to public works projects in the state.
(Additional reporting by Dai Wakabayashi in Seattle)
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