Accused

Congressmen are indicted

When the first tales were told of the Abscam operation, in which FBI agents masquerading as Arab millionaires bribed various Congressmen and local politicians, there were complaints that nobody had been charged, much less indicted. Last week the indictments began.

A federal grand jury in Brooklyn handed down five, four of them involving Philadelphians. Two are Democratic Congressmen: Michael ("Ozzie") Myers and Raymond Lederer. The others: Philadelphia Councilman Louis Johanson, Attorney Howard Criden and Camden (N.J.) Mayor Angelo Errichetti. All are charged with conspiracy to commit bribery and defraud the U.S. They could receive prison terms of up to 25 years and fines of at least $50,000.

According to the indictment, the Congressmen took $50,000 each in return for private immigration bills that would allow the Arabs to stay in the U.S. The FBI said the other three were middlemen who helped set up the deal. More indictments are expected, but convictions of two other Congressmen may be harder to obtain, since the chief informant, Criden, refuses to cooperate any longer unless he is given total immunity.

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