Los Angeles City Councilman Jose Huizar Arrested For Corruption

Los Angeles City Councilman Jose Huizar has been arrested in an ongoing corruption investigation that alleges City Hall officials accepted thousands in bribes from real estate developers.

Huizar, 51 was arrested at his Boyle Heights home on one count of conspiring to violate the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations. He will appear in court later today.

RELATED: NYC Man Who Shoved Elderly Woman Is A Registered Sex Offender, Arrested Over 100 Times

According to reports, the U.S. Attorney’s Office says that Huizar solicited and accepted “lucrative bribes and other financial benefits to enrich himself and his close associates in exchange for Huizar taking official actions favorable to the developers and others who financed and facilitated the bribes.”

In November of 2018, his office’s were raided but he was not arrested, and was allowed to remain as councilman.

“This case pulled back the curtain on rampant corruption at City Hall,” U.S. Attorney Nick Hanna said. “Councilman Huizar violated the public trust to a staggering degree, allegedly soliciting and accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes from multiple sources over many years. Using the power of his office to approve or stall large building projects, Huizar worked through a web of other corrupt city officials, lobbyists, consultants and developers to line his pockets and maintain his hold on Council District 14, which he turned into a money-making criminal enterprise that shaped the development landscape in Los Angeles.”

Huizar has been councilman to district 14 since 2005.

Source: ABC7