Anthony Russo (politician)

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Anthony Russo was the 35th mayor of Hoboken, New Jersey, serving from 1993 to 2001. He won two terms, but failed to get enough votes to get a third term. (David Roberts beat him in 2001 when he got 6,064 votes and Russo only got 4,759 votes. Roberts is the current mayor of Hoboken.)

In the 1993 election that got him into office, Russo beat his main opponent, Ira Karasick, by 7,023 to 5,623 votes. During his two terms, people who were loyal to Russo were put into the Hoboken Zoning Board and Planning Board by Russo. Anthony Russo's legacy has been overshadowed by corruption and cancer (see two sections below).

[edit] Corruption charges

In 2003, Russo was indicted for extortion and bribery, and he currently faces corruption charges. According to Abclocal.go.com, Russo is "accused of accepting thousands of dollars from businesses seeking city contracts between 1994 and 2001."

The U.S. Attorney's office said that Russo accepted $317,000 in bribes from the Lisa firm during his time as mayor. The Lisa firm (officially called Lisa and Associates) is a Hoboken-based firm that was run by a friend of Russo's. According to the Hoboken Reporter (Volume 22 Number 38), Russo has been sentenced to 30 months in prison.

Those who are prosecuting the case (Assistant U.S. attorneys Ralph Marra and Luis Valentin) said that Russo gave "misleading financial information". Also, during Russo's plea, Russo only admitted to receiving $5,000 instead of the $317,000 that he actually accepted.

Russo's Prisoner ID (BOP) # is 25827-050. Currently he is in the Federal Medical Center in Butner, North Carolina with a sheduled release date of September 8, 2007 [1].

[edit] Cancer

In 2000, it was discovered that Russo had cancer, in the form of a brain tumor. He said he would only live another 8 months, but doctors were successful at fighting the cancer temporarily. In March 2000, the tumor was removed, but another tumor was found in August of 2001. In 2002, the tumor went into remission, and because of this the doctors told Russo he could run for office again. He ran for 3rd Ward Councilperson, but had to tearfully resign shortly after being elected because the cancer reappeared.

The U.S. attorney said that cancer would not stop Russo from going to prison, and "the system has the capability of handling Russo's cancer".