Unsealed filing in Dean Skelos corruption case shows all eight Long Island state senators were subpoenaed
New York Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos and his son Adam leave Southern District Federal Court in Manhattan after his initial hearing on corruption charges on Monday, May 4, 2015. Credit: Anthony Lanzilote
In a filing unsealed on Thursday federal prosecutors revealed that they subpoenaed all eight Long Island Republican Senate colleagues of Sen. Dean Skelos in the course of building their corruption case against the former majority leader.
Prosecutors also said an early break in the probe came in materials provided by a developer -- since identified as Glenwood Management -- responding to a subpoena served in the investigation of former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver (D-Manhattan), who also faces corruption charges.
The disclosures about the backdrop to the Skelos case came in response to defense claims that the government improperly leaked information before filing charges, as prosecutors tried to show how sprawling the probe was and how many nongovernment people knew of it.
In papers filed with U.S. District Judge Valerie Caproni that were originally redacted to protect secret grand jury matters, prosecutors said they issued more than 150 subpoenas, interviewed 80 witnesses and talked to dozens of lawyers from the launch of the probe in April 2014 until Skelos was indicted in May.
Skelos (R-Rockville Centre) was ultimately charged with using his power to provide legislative favors to Glenwood Management, an environmental technology and a malpractice insurer in return for jobs and fees for his son, Adam Skelos, who also is charged.
In addition to those matters, however, prosecutors said they intensively investigated the law firm Skelos was connected to, Ruskin Moscou Faltischek of Uniondale, and the lobbying work it did, interviewing numerous partners and clients.
The indictment charges Skelos with getting Glenwood to arrange a title insurance job for his son. But the new filing says prosecutors issued "numerous subpoenas to real estate developers in New York that received requests from Dean Skelos to provide title insurance work to Adam Skelos."
It also says the probe reached matters not included in the indictment -- including a real estate transaction involving Skelos and his wife that was handled by a Florida title insurer, and subpoenas to a "large retirement community" in New York that named Skelos.
The retirement community is not identified, but the government says it also subpoenaed another senator and a New York "economic development agency" regarding the retirement community.Skelos' trial is scheduled for November.
