Biden aide sentenced for embezzling $400,000 for "fantasy life"

[NYCGirl]

U.S. District Judge Kent A. Jordan sentenced the former staffer, 34-year-old Roger D. Blevins III, of Elsmere, to three years and one month in prison for stealing more than $412,000.

The one-time assistant campaign manager for Biden spent the senator's money "to fund his own fantasy life," Assistant U.S. Attorney April Byrd said.

Blevins spent the money on three individuals he met through a gay pornographic Web site, where visitors could watch and interact with the performers in Florida. The site's slogan, at the time of Blevins' arrest, was "One house with five guys and 15 cameras."

Court papers say Blevins used most of the money to buy expensive cars, jewelry, trips to Florida and a plasma television that he gave as a gift.

Full article: http://www.delawareonline.com/newsjournal/local/2005/03/11exbidenaidegets.html

Edited to fix link

[Roland99]

1. I thought gay pornography was ok? Oh wait...that's just gay prostitution.

My bad.

[NYCGirl]

2. It's not the gay stuff — it's STEALING the money that's the problem. NT

[Roland99]

3. I know...I was just being a bit sarcastic

The RW seems to think Gannon is purely about the gay factor when nothing could be further from the truth.

Same with this.

[NYCGirl]

5. So was I.

:evilgrin:

But good point about Gannon.

[Old and In the Way]

4. What a sad and pathetic situation.

Still, I find it odd that Blevins could have moved this kind of $ without Biden having a clue. I wonder if we really know the entire story here.

[John_H]

6. Where are the (media)whores investigating Gannon's seeming

confession of involvement in this fiaso? Nowhere near it, I bet.

[progressiveboston]

7. Interresting Gannon Connection.... Possibly?????

Hrmmm. A former aide to Senator Biden is convicted in charges that relate to gay porn.

According to Americablog (can't take Credit)
http://americablog.blogspot.com/2005/03/is-gannonguckert-threatening-to-out.html
Monday night open thread
by John in DC - 3/7/2005 10:27:00 PM
Is GannonGuckert threatening to out Joe Biden as a customer?
by John in DC - 3/7/2005 07:59:00 PM

Sure sounds like it. This from GannonGuckert's Web site:
4:17pm

I watched a clip of Sen. Joe Biden on Bill Maher's HBO crapfest. I wonder why he didn't mention meeting me some years ago. C'mon Joe, think...

I smell a rat here... Wouldn't it be interesting if Sen Biden was the one who takes a fall over this mess? Rove is a evil ableit brilliant man. I wouldn't put it past him.

[NYCGirl]

8. The performers mentioned in the suit were in Florida.

Doesn't sound like Gannon was one of them.

[John_H]

9. Please.

Do you really think this guy was not playing sugar daddy in DC or Delaware?

Did this guy introduce his boy-toy, Gannon, to biden? maybe not, but it's worth looking into don't you think?

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

11. We may never know

There was no trial where the facts would come out. Blevins pleaded guilty.

http://www.delawaregrapevine.com/jan04stories/2-04%20blevins.htm

BLEVINS PLEADS GUILTY TO A $400,000 CRIME

By Celia Cohen

Grapevine Political Writer

Roger D. Blevins III acknowledged Wednesday in federal court he had betrayed the trust of U.S. Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. by bilking his Democratic patron out of more than $400,000 in campaign funds.

Blevins, a familiar behind-the-scenes figure in Democratic Party circles, was functioning as an assistant campaign treasurer when he siphoned off Biden's accounts for a spending spree on people he met on the Internet as well as on luxury items, including a Porsche, a BMW convertible, a plasma-screen television, trips to Florida and other travel expenses, according to federal prosecutors.

In a short proceeding before U.S. District Judge Gregory M. Sleet, Blevins pleaded guilty to two felony counts, the first for interstate transfer of stolen property for wiring money out of state and the second for aiding and abetting the making of a false statement by filing a federal campaign finance report that covered up the looting.

[NYCGirl]

12. Please yourself, John_H. There's plenty of gay performers out there.

They probably don't all know each other. Maybe Gannon isn't this guy's type.

IMO, other than the reason he was sitting in the WH press room (and I don't believe Biden's office has any power in this case), I think Gannon's been getting much too much attention. Not that he wouldn't want it...

[John_H]

14. You don't work for the NY Times, do you? How many

of those "plenty of gay performers out there" live in Wilmington Delaware" How many of the Wilmington Delaware gay performers also operate at high levels of DC political circles? How many of the plenty of gay performers from Delaware who operate at high levels of DC political circles have publicly taunted a U.S. Senator by referring to their having met?

You seem pretty uncuruious about what looks like an exceedingly odd coincidence. Or is it that you just think that this whole Gannon business detracts from the purpose of your original post, sliming Joe Biden with the antics of a rogue staffer.

[NYCGirl]

16. I'm not sliming Joe Biden at all. Gannon, on the other hand, is trying

to implicate Biden in something.

[John_H]

10. this doesn't reflect on Biden

how does it hurt biden if the slimeball who stole money from him was an associate of Gannon's?

Now the white-houses' favorite reporter being a sex provider to a convicted felon--now that's another story.

[mikelewis]

13. PLEASE UNDERSTAND THIS!!!

Gannon is intentinally dropping hints that he was somehow involved with Sen. Joe Biden. I believe this is an outright attempt to smear Sen. Biden's name as there is talk of a run in '08 for him. Do not get suckered into this cheap bullshit.

I think the whole thing is just a bunch on nonsense. If there were a connection to Sen. Biden, we are the only one's who are going to expose it. The Repukes won't because Gannon is a non-issue to them. In many repects, he's dead as a Republican journalist. His only hope is to ride the wave of Democrats who are justly outraged by this fool. But don't play his game.

If Joe Biden goes down, we are the ones who will do it. Not Gannon/Guckart. I'm not saying don't persue this, just proceed with extreme caution where this is concerned. Conjecture and rumor can do a lot to hurt a career and a campaign. I'm not supporting Biden for a run on '08, Kerry is still my choice. But Biden will most likely be Kerry's Sec. of State and I would like to see him in this job. Now if it turns out he was involved in this $400,000 debacle, burn him! But until we have the facts, let's not play Gannon's game.

[John_H]

15. Huh? Someone breaks into my house and I'm "associated" with

the crime? Someone embezzles from my business and I'm "smeared" by association?

If it turns out that Gannon knew felon Bivens it reflects on the man who called on Gannon at a press conference, the people who gave Gannon a press pass, and the people who agree with Gannon's politics, not the victim of his associate's crime.

I suggest DUers read this thread very carefully. It seems to me there are some who don't want a Bivens/Biden connection made. I wonder why?

[mikelewis]

18. Who wants there to be a connection? You?

I don't care if Biden is a closet pillow-biter or not. The two things I do care about is if he was involved somehow with this $400,000 and if the President is manipulating the Press by using phony press agents to sell his agenda; i.e. propaganda.


There have been other threads that addressed the issue of whether or not Biden was using Gannon/Guckert services. Truthfully, I don't give a rats ass if he was. Gannon insists on baiting you guys with innuendo and you're eating it up. This is petty and ridiculous.

I am under the belief that it is no one's business what Gannon was doing prior to becoming a White House Press Correspondant. What concerns me is he had no credentials to get there in the first place and that it appears he had access to Top Secret information concerning Valerie Plame. By rooting around in the mud, you're loosing sight of the real issues concerning Gannon and he is loving it. He's baiting people with bullshit and they can't wait to eat it up.

Don't you find it sort of odd that once the info comes out on Gannon, there's now a very prominent Democratic Senator in your bullseye and not the cock-sucker that got him the job in the first place?


And yes, if someone embezzles money from your business, you are smeared not by association but by innuendo. It shows a lack of capability of oversight. This is big black-eye for Biden as it stands. He is ultimately responsible for the loss of this money. He's the Senator and it's his responsibility to ensure that the money he is authorized to spend is spent wisely. Biden may not be legally responsible but morally, he's just as guilty. $400,000 is a lot of money to spend without getting noticed by your boss. It was Biden's responsibility to oversee the use of our money and he failed us miserably.

My contention concerning the Gannon/Biden reference is that I don't care if they had sex together. What would interest me is if he paid for that sex with my tax dollar. That would bother me but so far there is no evidence to that affect other than a wink and a nod from the prostitute.

[leftofthedial]

17. Jimmy Jeff "rears" his ugly "head"

(I crack me up)

What the hell is going on in Delaware?

[PrjctGrnlght]

19. 3 years

is a long time! He's an embezzler, huh?

[mikelewis]

20. Three years of getting gang raped - hope he likes it rough