Federal prosecutors have announced bank-related charges against former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert.
A statement from the U.S. attorney's office in Chicago says the 73-year-old Illinois Republican is accused of structuring the withdrawal of $952,000 in cash in order to evade the requirement that banks report cash transactions over $10,000. He's also accused of lying to the FBI.
Each count of the indictment carries a maximum penalty of 5 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
From 2010 to 2014, Hastert withdrew a total of approximately $1.7 million in cash from various bank accounts and provided it to a person identified only as Individual A, according to the indictment.
In December last year, "Hastert falsely stated that he was keeping the cash'' when questioned by the FBI, the prosecutor's statement says.
Read the full indictment here.