Prosecutor: Congressman charged with lying ‘lost his way’

By BRIAN MELLEY
Associated Press

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A federal prosecutor says a Republican congressman from Nebraska lied to the FBI to protect his sterling reputation after accepting an illegal $30,000 campaign donation from a Nigerian-born billionaire. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mack Jenkins told jurors in Los Angeles federal court Thursday that U.S. Rep. Jeff Fortenberry got caught up in a cycle of power and money and lost his way. Fortenberry’s lawyer says federal agents set him up and cherry picked statements to make him look guilty. They also said he wouldn’t have risked his reputation for a small sum when he had a big war chest. Jurors began deliberating Thursday afternoon.