A former ally of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is expected to plead guilty Friday in federal court on charges that he coordinated the shutdown of the George Washington Bridge, according to U.S. law enforcement officials.
David Wildstein, a former official at the New York and New Jersey Port Authority, would become the first person convicted in the investigation into the September 2013 lane closures, which were allegedly carried out as political retribution. Other people will face federal charges as well, those law enforcement officials said.
Gov. Chris Christie is not being charged in relation to the Bridgegate scandal, law enforcement officials told CNN.
The U.S. Attorney’s office announced “a proceeding of interest in a criminal matter” related to the Bridgegate investigation before U.S. District Judge Susan Wigenton at a Newark courthouse scheduled for 11 a.m. on Friday.
U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman, Port Authority Inspector General Michael Nestor and an FBI official will hold a news conference at a 1 p.m. press conference.
That investigation has also focused on Christie, who appointed Wildstein to the Port Authority position, and the governor’s staff. Federal prosecutors reportedly interviewed Christie over the Bridgegate affair late last year.
Christie has repeatedly denied any involvement in or advance knowledge of the lane closures.
It is not yet clear whether Wildstein struck a plea deal with prosecutors to give them more information into how the scandal unfolded.
Wildstein is not the only link to Christie in the scandal.
Christie fired his former deputy chief of staff Bridget Kelly after an email she sent to Wildstein calling for “traffic problems in Fort Lee” surfaced.
Christie also cut loose one of his top advisers, Bill Stepien, who was expected to play a key role in an eventual Christie presidential campaign, after Stepien’s name also popped up in email exchanges linked to the bridge closures.
The controversy surrounding the closures deeply damaged Christie’s standing within the national GOP and raised doubts about his viability in the presidential race, but the governor has continued to prepare for a bid and has given little indication that the scandal will dissuade him from the race.