Story highlights
- Former House Speaker Dennis Hastert is set to enter a guilty plea in the federal hush money case against him
- Hastert is alleged to have lied about structuring a $3.5 million payment plan to a person he wronged in his past
Washington (CNN)Former House Speaker Dennis Hastert plans to plead guilty on charges of lying to federal investigators, according to the U.S. Attorney's office in Chicago.
Hastert's attorneys told U.S. District Judge Thomas Durkin on Thursday that they have reached a plea agreement on the charges that he lied to federal investigators about plans to pay someone he had wronged $3.5 million in hush money.
Hastert is scheduled to enter his plea at an October 28 hearing, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for Northern Illinois. Only then will the details of the plea agreement be revealed, even though prosecutors submitted a draft of the agreement to the judge sometime before Monday.
Hastert was not in the courtroom for Thursday morning's hearing.
The Chicago Tribune and other news outlets reported the agreement prior to the U.S. Attorney Office's announcement.
Photos: Dennis Hastert's political career
Photos: Dennis Hastert's political career
Dennis Hastert in 1985 as a member of the Illinois House of Representatives, where he served from 1980 to 1986.
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Photos: Dennis Hastert's political career
Hastert is sworn in as speaker of the House of Representatives on January 6, 1999, during the opening session of the House in Washington. Hastert replaced Newt Gingrich.
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Photos: Dennis Hastert's political career
Hastert stands behind President George W. Bush as he signs Medicare legislation in December 2003. Hastert fought hard for the bill in the House, leading to a three-hour vote on November 22, 2003.
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Photos: Dennis Hastert's political career
House Rules Chairman David Dreier and Hastert hold a news conference on a GOP lobbying reform package, which included banning privately funded travel and eliminating access to the House floor for former members who are registered lobbyists. On January 3, 2006, Hastert donated $70,000 of campaign contributions from companies associated with lobbyist Jack Abramoff to charity after Abramoff pleaded guilty to corruption charges.
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Photos: Dennis Hastert's political career
Vice President Dick Cheney greets Hastert before Latvian President Vaira Vike-Freiberga speaks to a joint meeting of Congress in June 2006. Earlier that month, Hastert had surpassed Joe Cannon to become the longest-serving Republican speaker of the House.
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Photos: Dennis Hastert's political career
Hastert celebrates his re-election to an 11th term in Congress on November 7, 2006, with his wife, Jean, at a victory party in the Baker Hotel in St. Charles, Illinois. Republicans lost their majority in the House, meaning Hastert lost his position as speaker when the new Congress started on January 4, 2007.
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Photos: Dennis Hastert's political career
Hastert announces that he will not seek re-election for a 12th term on August 17, 2007, as he stands on the steps of the old Kendall County courthouse in Yorkville, Illinois.
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Photos: Dennis Hastert's political career
Hastert walks through Statuary Hall on his way to the House floor to make his farewell address to Congress on November 15, 2007. He formally resigned on November 26, 2007, after 20 years in office.
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Two sources with knowledge of the federal investigation told CNN in June that Hastert was paying a former student to stay quiet about allegations of sexual abuse from when he was a wrestling coach and teacher in Yorkville, Illinois.
The indictment details payments and a payment plan to an unidentified "Individual A," by Hastert. But that person has never been officially identified.
Hastert was charged with lying to FBI investigators about his payment plan for "Individual A" and structuring bank transactions under $10,000 to avoid triggering federal reporting requirements.
Hastert initially pleaded not guilty to all charges, but Hastert's defense team entered negotiations with prosecutors last month. At the time, Durkin set an October 15 hearing date to receive either an update on the negotiations or set a March or April trial date.
The plea deal would forgo the trial, which could easily be damaging for Hastert. Hastert has remained on bail on his own recognizance, although he did surrender his passport as part of the bail agreement.
