Experts Say Meeks' Hiding of His Loan Sources is Crime

Rep. Gregory Meeks’ refusal to reveal the sources of $55,000 in secret loans violates the law, experts say.

Now that he has admitted failing to disclose two loans over the last three years, he must identify who gave him the cash, House rules say.

His filing, delivered to the Clerk of the House Monday, discloses what the Daily News revealed Sunday: Meeks got a $40,000 “personal loan” in 2007 and a $15,000 “personal loan” in 2008.

The Queens Democrat does not say where he got the money or why he neglected to disclose it on his financial disclosure forms in 2007 and 2008.

Deliberate failure to disclose the information could result in criminal charges, said Melanie Sloan, director of the nonpartisan watchdog group, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.

“There are federal criminal issues here,” she said. “The fact that he didn’t disclose it indicates he was deliberately hiding it. It’s unlikely this is an accident. Meeks did something wrong and was hiding it.”

Read more: (Greg B. Smith, “Rep. Gregory Meeks’ Hiding of His Loan Sources is Crime: Experts,” New York Daily News, 06/23/10)