An INTERNATIONAL BONEHEAD AWARD goes to Jack and Leslie Johnson, Prince Georges County, MD

[Sandra]

An INTERNATIONAL BONEHEAD AWARD
goes to Jack and Leslie Johnson, Prince Georges County, MD


Prince George's Co. Executive Jack Johnson, Wife Arrested
ANNAPOLIS, Md - Prince George's County's top official and 
his wife were accused Friday of tampering with evidence after 
agents tapping his cell phone heard him tell her to flush a 
$100,000 check from a developer down the toilet and hide 
nearly $80,000 cash in her underwear as FBI agents were 
at their door, according to an affidavit.

County Executive Jack Johnson, whose second term expires 
next month, and his wife, Leslie, who was recently elected to the 
County Council, were charged with witness and evidence 
tampering and destruction, alteration and falsification of records 
in a federal investigation. Jack Johnson said Friday night he was 
innocent of the charges.

The investigation related to allegations that some real estate 
developers in the county were bribing public officials in exchange 
for official acts favorable to certain developers and their companies.

The Johnsons could be heard on the phone by FBI agents discussing 
how to get rid of evidence, after agents came knocking at their 
Mitchellville home on Friday, according to an affidavit from
investigators.

"Tear it up! That is the only thing you have to do," Johnson
told his wife, 
according to the affidavit.
Leslie Johnson then could be heard asking her husband, "Do you want 
me to put it down the toilet?"

The county executive responded, "Yes, flush that," according to
the 
affidavit, which noted that monitoring agents heard a flushing sound 
in the background.

Johnson then told his wife to put cash in her underwear, according 
to the affidavit. After FBI agents entered the home, they searched 
Leslie Johnson and recovered $79,600 from her underwear.

The Johnsons were arrested at home and released later on personal 
recognizance. Jack Johnson was placed on home detention with 
electronic monitoring. They both face a maximum of 20 years in prison.

U.S. Attorney Rod Rosenstein said authorities have tapped Jack 
Johnson's phone since January 2010. This has been a lengthy 
investigation involving the FBI and the IRS, he said, and prosecutors 
expect more charges to be filed and more people to be charged.

Jack Johnson, 61, has been county executive since 2002; his term 
ends in three weeks. The Democrat was the county state's attorney 
for eight years before that. Born in Charleston, South Carolina, 
Johnson attended Benedict College and got his law degree from 
Howard University, where his wife was also a law student.