Former Bush FDA Chief Faces Criminal Charges

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Bloomberg reports:

Lester Crawford, the former U.S. Food and Drug Administration commissioner who resigned after two months on the job, was charged in federal court for conflict of interest and making false statements related to his investments.

Crawford, 68, falsely stated in a 2004 government filing that shares of Sysco Corp. and Kimberly-Clark Corp. had been sold when he and his wife continued to hold them, U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Taylor said in the charging documents. Crawford also failed to disclose income from exercising stock options in Embrex Inc., the documents said.

Crawford was chairman of the FDA’s Obesity Working Group, formed to study the link between weight and health in the U.S., while owning shares of Sysco, a distributor of snack foods, and Pepsico Inc., the world’s No. 2 soft drink maker, Taylor said.

Update: It looks like Crawford is likely to plead guilty.

We’ve added the charging documents against Crawford to the TPM Document Collection. The charges are laid out in an “Information” – such a filing (which prosecutors use in lieu of an indictment) is usually a prelude to a guilty plea. An arraignment has been scheduled tomorrow for Crawford. Our call to his lawyer was not immediately returned.

Update: Yep, he’s pleading guilty.

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