Birmingham, Alabama Mayor Arrested On 101 Counts Of Fraud

Larry P. Langford, 62 , the mayor of Birmingham, Alabama, was taken into custody today on federal fraud charges alleging that he steering millions of dollars of bond work to a friend in exchange for more than $230,000 in bribes that paid his debts for flashy clothes, jewelry and Rolex watches. The 101 count indictment filed against Langford and two co-conspirators, William B. Blount, 55 and Albert W. LaPierre, 58, include charges include bribery, conspiracy, money laundering and filing false tax returns. Prior to becoming mayor of Birmingham, Langford was president of the Jefferson County Commission and had been charged by the SEC with taking more than $156,000 from Blount's investment banking firm, Blount Parish & Co., Inc., via a friend and lobbyist, LaPierre, according to the SEC complaint. Both Blount and LaPierre were indicted in today's filing, along with Langford. Blount received more than $7 million in commission on a bond deal Langford steered to him.

Read the story here, here and here.

Read the DOJ's press release here.