Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder Embroiled in Massive Bribery Scandal

WASHINGTON, KOMPAS.com – Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder and four others were exposed for their roles in the state's largest bribery scandal in history.

Householder who is a Republican and the other four men arrested in the bribery case are all tied to US state politics. The arrest took place on Tuesday.

The $60 million bribery case stemmed from a bill passed last year to bail out Ohio’s nuclear power plants, according to a US prosecutor.

US Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio David DeVillers revealed the findings to the public calling it the largest bribery and money-laundering scheme in state history.

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The five men were charged with conspiracy to commit racketeering.

Shares of FirstEnergy Corp fell 17 percent following David DeVillers’s announcement.

David did not identify the company involved in the bribery scandal, however, Akron-based FirstEnergy operates Ohio’s two nuclear plants.

The company, he said, gave $60 million to Generation Now, a political nonprofit operated by the five men, funds used for lobbying that secured passage of a controversial $1.5 billion bill that bailed out the plants, he said.

"These allegations were bribery pure and simple," DeVillers said.

FirstEnergy said in a release it had received subpoenas in connection with the investigation, was reviewing details and intends to fully cooperate with the probe.

Republican Ohio Governor Mike DeWine called for Householder to resign immediately.

In recent years, FirstEnergy was among several companies that have lobbied state and federal officials to get subsidies to keep reactors in service.

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Aging nuclear plants have suffered from higher security costs and competition from power plants that burn cheaper natural gas.