Ex-employee of Bush media consultant indicted in 'debategate' case

From CNN Justice Department Producer Terry Frieden

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A federal grand jury on Tuesday indicted a former employee of a media consultant used by then-presidential candidate George W. Bush, charging her with leaking debate preparation materials to an associate of Democrat Al Gore.

The indictment, returned by a grand jury in Austin, Texas, charges Juanita Yvette Lozano with mail fraud, making false statements to the FBI and perjury before a grand jury.

A Justice Department official said Lozano plans to surrender to authorities and appear in court in Austin, but no court date has been set.

In a statement, the Justice Department said Lozano could face up to 15 years in prison and a $750,000 fine if convicted.

Lozano, 30, had worked for Maverick Media, which had been hired by the Bush campaign. Before joining the Bush campaign, she had been a Democrat.

At the time of the September incident, both Bush and Gore denied any knowledge of moles or misdeeds within their respective campaigns.

"The indictment charges that Lozano secretly gathered and copied more than 120 pages of debate preparation documents and a 60-minute video tape of a private debate preparation session involving Bush and his key advisors," the Justice Department statement said.

The statement said Lozano sent the materials to Tom Downey, a former Democratic congressman who was assisting the Gore campaign. The indictment said Lozano used the name Amy Smith and provided a false return address. Lozano, according to the Justice Department, enclosed a note which said, "I will call you soon to find out what other materials can be useful to the VP."

Downey has said that as soon as he received the package in September, he reported the matter to the FBI, which then launched an investigation.

Count One against Lozano charges her with mail fraud for defrauding the Bush campaign of its work product and of defrauding her employer of honest services.

Count Two charges Lozano with lying to FBI agents who interviewed her the week after the package was sent and misleading the agents about her reasons for visiting the post office and mailing a package.

Count Three charges that Lozano testified falsely that she knew nothing about Downey or his location prior to the package being sent.

The 12-page indictment includes a transcript of Lozano's repeated denials to the grand jury that she had any knowledge of the incident.

Lozano's lawyer could not be reached for immediate comment.

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