Tom DeLay, Jack Abramoff, and the Southern District

"Lobbyist Jack Abramoff, a key figure in investigations involving House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, was indicted Thursday by a federal grand jury on fraud charges arising from a 2000 deal to buy casino boats. The indictment, returned by a grand jury in Fort Lauderdale, charges that Abramoff and an associate, 36-year-old New York businessman Adam Kidan, used a fake wire transfer to defraud two lenders out of some $60 million to finance the deal for SunCruz Casinos." The House Ethics Committee is reviewing allegations that Abramoff paid some of DeLay's overseas travel expenses. Abramoff is represented by Neal Sonnett. Kidan is represented by Martin Jaffe. Read more at CNN or the Miami Herald or the Sun-Sentinel.