Former Los Angeles City Councilman Mitchell Englander has agreed to please guilty in an obstruction-of-justice case that centered on his acceptance of money, escort services and other gifts during trips to two casinos, according to a plea agreement filed Friday.
Englander, 49, will plead guilty to one count of scheming to falsify material facts. Prosecutors had previously accused Englander of lying to FBI agents as they investigated his decision to acceptance of cash payments and other freebies from a businessman with companies in Southern California.
That businessman has been cooperating with the FBI.
Englander represented the northwest San Fernando Valley from 2011 to 2018. Prosecutors said Englander received most of the gifts while on a trip to Las Vegas with two city staffers, a lobbyist and a real estate developer. On the trip, he accepted an envelope with $10,000 in cash; hotel rooms; $1,000 in casino gambling chips; $34,000 in bottle service at a nightclub; and a $2,481 dinner, according to federal court filings.
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