Skelos and son found guilty

“How many prosecutions will it take before Albany gives the people of NY the honest government they deserve?”

Former State Senate majority leader Dean Skelos and his son Adam Skelos were found guilty of corruption charges Friday, in a case which prominently featured the real estate industry. U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said in a statement.

It also flew in the face of repeated predictions by the elder Skelos – including as recently as Wednesday evening – that he and his son would be acquitted of the shakedown scheme.

Mr. Bharara’s office charged the former majority leader of using the powers of his office to illegally extort three companies into setting his son up with jobs and money. “You can be a state senator, and you can be a father”.

The verdict comes less than two weeks after the conviction of former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, and marks the end of an unprecedented year that saw both leaders of the Legislature arrested and then tossed out by their conferences.

Prosecutors said that, shortly after he was named majority leader, Skelos secured a job for Adam at Physicians’ Reciprocal Insurers. Defense attorneys largely accepted the government’s factual allegations, but they argued that prosecutors viewed those facts through “dirty windows” to find quid pro quo dealings where none exist. The defense countered by arguing that Bonomo and others had independently made a decision to help Adam Skelos because they believed employing the son of a powerbroker would be good for business. The 33-year-old nearly never showed up to work, and when his supervisor accosted him about his absences, he threatened him with assault-and had his father warn CEO Anthony Bonomo to make his supervisor stop “picking on” him.

Another cooperating witness – Charles Dorego, general counsel of the politically active Glenwood Management real-estate firm – testified that Dean had relentlessly “badgered” him about “helping” out Adam.