Bernie Sanders and his wife reportedly lawyer up amid FBI probe: Politico Magazine
- Sen. Bernie Sanders and his wife, Jane, have hired lawyers as the FBI investigates allegations of bank fraud, Politico Magazine reports.
- The investigation centers around whether Jane Sanders fraudulently obtained a bank loan and whether the senator's office pressured the bank to approve the application, according to Politico.
- Representatives for Sen. Sanders didn't immediately respond to a request for comment from CNBC.
Sen. Bernie Sanders and his wife, Jane Sanders, have reportedly hired lawyers amid a federal investigation into allegations of fraud connected to a bankrupt college where Jane Sanders was once president, according to a report.
This week, Politico Magazine said the couple have obtained legal counsel amidst a Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) investigation into whether Jane Sanders fraudulently obtained a bank loan for the now defunct Burlington College in Vermont. Additionally, investigators are probing whether the Vermont senator's office pressured the bank to approve the loan, Politico Magazine added.
While the Sanders' have largely tried to downplay the investigation, the pair has now lawyered up, Politico reported, retaining well-connected Burlington attorney, Rich Cassidy. Also part of the legal team is Larry Robbins, a noted Washington-based defense attorney who represented I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, the publication stated.
The story of Burlington College has been fodder for more than a year, chronicled primarily by local Vermont publication VTDigger. During the hotly-contested 2016 Democratic primary, it emerged that the FBI was looking into the possibility that Jane Sanders falsely inflated Burlington's projected donor contributions, which were pledged to a massive capital expansion of the campus.
After securing a $10 million loan, the tiny liberal arts college was forced to shutter its doors in May 2016, citing a "crushing" debt load.
Representatives for Sen. Sanders didn't immediately respond to CNBC's request for comment. In a previous interview, Sanders dismissed the allegations as politically motivated.
Click here to read the full article in Politico Magazine.