Plea deal for ex-councilman (R) involved in Matt O'Donnell sting operation

Former Mount Arlington Councilman John Windish has pleaded guilty to bribery charges connected to a controversial 2019 sting operation involving former tax appeal attorney Matt O’Donnell as the state’s cooperating witness in a small-ball sting operation that has proven to be an albatross for the embattled New Jersey Office of Public Integrity and Accountability.

Windish, now 72 and appearing before a judge virtually from a medical facility, admitted that he accepted an envelope with $7,000 in cash from O’Donnell. Prosecutors allege that Windish took the money in exchange for a commitment that he would vote to reappoint O’Donnell as the municipal attorney during a meeting at a hotel in Hanover in 2018. O’Donnell was wearing a wire.

The state is asking for a non-custodial sentence.

He lost the Republican primary that year. State law prohibited cash contributions of over $200.




https://newjerseyglobe.com/judiciary/plea-deal-for-ex-councilman-involved-in-matt-odonnell-sting-operation/