Leona Beldini

Jersey City Deputy Mayor Leona Beldini and Edward Cheatam, an official in both Hudson County and Jersey City, were charged today in a one-count Indictment with conspiring to extort corrupt cash payments, illicit political contributions, and other benefits under color of official right, in return for Beldini’s and an elected Jersey City official’s influence in Jersey City government matters, Acting U.S. Attorney Ralph J. Marra, Jr., announced. Beldini, 74, and Cheatam, 61, both of Jersey City, were originally arrested on a criminal Complaint on the morning of July 23, 2009, along with 42 other individuals, resulting from a two-track federal investigation of public corruption ... Read Full Story

Beldini (New Jersey City Rotary) Jersey City Deputy Mayor Leona Beldini is one of 44 people arrested in a huge corruption investigation in New Jersey. The alleged corruption includes international money laundering and organ trafficking. The AP reported: The number of arrests was noteworthy even for New Jersey, a state that has seen more than 130 public officials plead guilty or be convicted of corruption since 2001. "New Jersey's corruption problem is one of the worst, if not the worst, in the nation," said Ed Kahrer, who heads the FBI's white collar and public corruption investigation division. "Corruption is a cancer that is destroying ... Read Full Story