Rep. Don Young refuses to say whether or not he took bribes from an oil exec

Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska) is refusing to say whether he took bribes from an oil executive at the center of the corruption probe that forced former Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) to resign.

Young brushed away a reporter who asked him about the allegations Thursday as he entered the Alaska Federation of Natives convention in Anchorage, according to a report by McClatchy Newspapers.

Bill Allen, the former chief of Veco, an Alaska oil company, signed a confession in 2007 that included the charges about Young, to whom the document referred as “United States Representative A.” That confession became public Wednesday night as part of Allen’s upcoming sentencing for bribing state lawmakers.

The document details Allen’s 13 years of criminal activity, which largely focused on giving illegal gifts to politicians and government officials, including Stevens and Young.

Earlier this year, a federal judge overturned the Stevens conviction after possible misconduct was discovered by the Justice Department attorneys who prosecuted the case.

A year ago, Stevens had been found guilty of lying on Senate financial disclosure forms. He lost his bid for reelection in November to Mark Begich, then the mayor of Anchorage.

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