Ex-Bush Official Linked to Abramoff Found Guilty in Lobbying Case

June 20, 2006 — -- A federal jury in Washington, D.C., convicted former Bush administration official David Safavian of obstructing justice in a trial that tested the strength of the government's investigation into former lobbyist Jack Abramoff and his controversial connections on Capitol Hill.

Safavian, formerly the federal government's chief procurement officer, was convicted Tuesday on four counts of making false statements and obstructing justice for impeding investigations into his relationship with Abramoff.

The jury found Safavian not guilty on a fifth count that he lied to Senate investigators on the Senate Indian Affairs Committee who were looking into Abramoff's lobbying efforts for Indian tribes. This was the first trial related to the scandal stemming from the dealings of Abramoff, who has pleaded guilty to federal crimes.

Once the trial adjourned, Safavian hugged his wife and they both began to cry together and comfort each other. Safavian faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison for each of the four counts he was convicted on, plus a $250,000 fine.

Outside the courthouse, Safavian's attorney, Barbara Van Gelder said the fight is not over. "We will, of course, appeal the charges that Mr. Safavian was found guilty on, in part because we think that a lot of the evidence that came in was evidence that was not for the truth," Van Gelder said.

Safavian, a former General Services Administration chief of staff and Office of Management and Budget official, was arrested in September 2005 on charges of lying about his links to Abramoff and obstructing justice.

The Justice Department alleged that instead of doing the work of a government employee, Safavian was working to further the business interests of Ambramoff by helping him navigate government leasing opportunities.

The government alleged that shortly after May 2002, when Safavian became the GSA chief of staff, Abramoff began to contact him about obtaining leases for GSA-owned property where Abramoff wished to build a school. Although Abramoff did not testify, the government's evidence during the trial relied heavily on e-mails between him and Safavian.