NACo-Gate Day 29: $960,669 Paid To Lawyers Connected To NACo Campaign

Millville - The plot in Lou Magazzu's NACo-Gate dilemma has thickened. On September 4, 2009 Magazzu told Politickernj.com, "...some political supporters indicated that they wanted to be of assistance in my NACo run."

As Republicans comb through piles of documents pertaining to Magazzu and NACo-Gate they have recently discovered exactly why some of the supporting cast in NACo-Gate might have wanted to be of assistance to Magazzu. In the years 2007 and 2008 members of the supporting cast of NACo-Gate received $960,669 from Cumberland County according to 1099s and W-2 forms obtained through OPRA requests.

"$960, 000 is a lot of reasons for people to be supportive of any person," Cumberland County GOP Chairman Bob Greco said. "This of course leads to a question of how many of these professionals ‘indicated that they wanted to be of assistance' before the freeholder board modified the County's Code of Ethics. The original question of why the freeholder board modified the Code of Ethics still stands."

"It's simply amazing that twenty-five percent of Magazzu's contributors gave him gifts exactly eight days after the freeholder board modified the Code of Ethics," Greco added. "The only way Lou Magazzu can prove he did not violate the County Code of Ethics before the modification is to produce bank records for his NACo account."

Greco asked, "How many professionals did Lou Magazzu ask for campaign contributions prior to the freeholder board voting to modify the Code of Ethics? Was the reason the freeholder board voted on February 26, 2009 to amend the Code of Ethics so Magazzu could be in compliance with the Code while soliciting funds for his NACo campaign? Did Magazzu know he was soliciting contributions in direct violation of that Code of Ethics? Was the change to the Code of Ethics discussed by Magazzu and any of the six freeholders who voted on it at any time prior to the meeting?"

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Paid for by Cumberland County Regular Republican Organization