Rep. Cunningham's House Sale Probed (to defense contractor)

Rep. Cunningham's House Sale Probed
By ERICA WERNER, Associated Press Writer
10 minutes ago


WASHINGTON - A court hearing was scheduled for Monday in San Diego in the case of Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham, R-Calif., whose sale of a home to a defense contractor attracted the attention of federal investigators.

Debra Hartman, a spokeswoman for the U.S. attorney's office in San Diego, declined to discuss the subject of the hearing. However, she said federal officials planned to hold a news conference afterward to discuss a "significant" development in the case.

Cunningham, 63, an eight-term congressman and Vietnam War flying ace, came under investigation after reports last June that he'd sold his Del Mar, Calif., home to a defense contractor, Mitchell Wade, for what appeared to be an inflated price.

A call to Cunningham's defense attorney was not immediately returned.

Cunningham and his wife, Nancy, used the proceeds from the $1,675,000 sale to buy a $2.55 million mansion in ritzy Rancho Santa Fe, Calif. Wade put the Del Mar house back on the market and sold it after nearly a year for $975,000 — a loss of $700,000 in one of the nation's hottest housing markets.


http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051128/ap_on_go_co/congressman_s_house