Former Chairman Kwame Brown pleads guilty to bank fraud charges

Former D.C. Council Chairman Kwame R. Brown pleaded guilty on Friday to bank fraud charges for lying on loan applications and violating a city campaign law, bringing a once promising career to an end. In the first of two court appearances, Brown admitted that he committed a federal felony when he forged a name on one loan document and then switched a “3” to an “8” on another to increase his salary.

The bank fraud charge carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison, but under federal guidelines spelled out in his plea deal, he faces a lesser punishment, up to six months in jail, when he is sentenced on September 20, 2012. However, U.S. District Judge Richard J. Leon can sentence Brown to more time behind bars. In his second court appearance, he pleaded guilty in D.C. Superior Court to a misdemeanor charge of violating a city campaign statute that prohibits cash expenditures in excess of $50. He is expected to serve six months in jail for that charge. Brown, 41, has agreed to cooperate with investigators and remains free pending sentencing.