New Council Chair Kwame Brown.

Photo by Matt.Dunn.

Well, this makes things a little more interesting: during a hearing regarding an audit of current D.C. Council Chair Kwame Brown’s 2008 campaign finances, the D.C. Office of Campaign Finance revealed that the United States Attorney’s Office has begun investigating the claims.

Representatives from OCF told the Board of Elections and Ethics that they had already been in contact with USAO and passed along related documentation on the audit. Brown’s lawyer, Fred Cooke, actually motioned to the Board that he’d prefer to “cut to the chase” and have the feds investigate the matter. The move would delay potential BOEE fines against Brown, but obviously raises the stakes for the Chair, as a criminal investigation by a federal office could carry harsher punishment.

Brown is not at the hearing, as he’s currently chairing a public oversight hearing regarding the city’s supplemental 2011 budget.

Filed Under: board of elections and ethics, campaign, chair, council, finance, investigators, kwame brown, office of campaign finance, politics, us attorneys office,