Feds: Hawaii Lawmakers Took Dirty Money for Cesspool Bills

A Hawaii state senator and a state representative took bribes including envelopes of cash, Las Vegas hotel rooms, and New Orleans casino chips in exchange for shaping legislation that would benefit a company involved in publicly financed cesspool conversion projects, according to federal allegations filed in court. Former Senate Majority Leader J. Kalani English tried unsuccessfully to hide an envelope with a $5,000 bribe when FBI agents stopped his vehicle in January 2021 after a meeting with a business owner who benefited from the cesspool legislation, according to a charging document filed in US District Court in Honolulu on Tuesday.

In all, English received more than $18,000 in bribes, prosecutors said, including Las Vegas hotel rooms and cash for a crab dinner for friends and family visiting from Tahiti. English, 54, announced his retirement in May 2021, saying he was suffering from long-term effects of COVID-19. The Democrat represented east Maui, Molokai, and Lanai. "Kalani is extremely remorseful and deeply sorry for his actions," his attorney, Richard Sing, said in a statement, per the AP. "He has cooperated fully with the Federal Government and will be taking formal responsibility in the form of a guilty plea to be completed in the coming days."

A charging document against state Rep. Ty Cullen, 41, said bribes he received included casino chips and four cash payments totaling $23,000. Cullen's attorney, Birney Bervar, said Wednesday that his client accepts full responsibility for his actions and is expected to plead guilty next week. House Speaker Scott Saiki said Cullen, a Democrat who represented Waipahu and West Loch on Oahu, submitted his resignation Tuesday. Separate charging documents for each lawmaker said the bribe payer was someone having a business "well positioned to avail itself of publicly financed cesspool conversion projects." Both lawmakers are charged with honest services wire fraud. If convicted, each faces a sentence of up to 20 years imprisonment, and a fine of up to $250,000. (More Hawaii stories.)