High-flying US congressman convicted in racketeering case that entangled his son and wife

In his heyday, US Representative Chaka Fattah flew with the US president on Air Force One, doled out millions in science and education grants from his perch on the House Appropriations Committee and graced galas back home in Philadelphia on the arm of his elegant TV anchor wife.

But on Tuesday, Fattah’s 30-year political career appeared to crater after a federal jury convicted him of laundering federal grants and nonprofit funds to repay an illegal US$1 million campaign loan and help family and friends.

Fattah’s namesake son is already serving a five-year term in an overlapping bank fraud case that largely stemmed from the son’s excessive lifestyle. Chaka “Chip” Fattah Jr, a college dropout, lived in a Ritz Carlton condominium while holding himself out as a high-end concierge.

The father’s Achilles heel was not the luxe life so much as a losing game of political chess. Fattah decided in 2007 to return home and run for mayor, and he was the early favourite as the city’s longtime Democratic congressman. But his campaign hit a snag amid new campaign finance limits.

The jury found Tuesday that Fattah took the US$1 million loan from former Sallie Mae chairman Albert Lord but nonetheless came in fourth in the primary. Fattah then found himself scrambling when Lord called in the debt.

He used federal grant money to repay some of the money, routing it through a campaign consultant, the jury found.