BUFFALO, N.Y. -- State Senator Rob Ortt was indicted Wednesday on felony election law violations in Albany. A source tells us his predecessor, George Maziarz, was also indicted on similar charges.
A spokesperson for Ortt confirms the North Tonawanda-based senator faces charges of offering a false instrument for filing.
Read more on the New York State of Politics blog.
The news of the indictment comes on the same day Ortt volunteered to testify in front of an Albany County grand jury convened by State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman. A spokesperson for Ortt told us earlier in the day that the senator was set to testify as part of an investigation surrounding Maziarz.
Ortt's spokesperson says the senator is not stepping down and will fight the charges. His district, the 62nd, encompasses all of Niagara and Orleans counties and Sweden and Ogden, near Rochester, in Monroe County.
Ortt released this statement:
“As someone who fought and sacrificed for our country, I am sickened that a career politician and hyper partisan like Eric Schneiderman can concoct baseless charges to serve his own political agenda.
“One thing is clear: the only reason I am included in this is to make their case politically appealing. As multiple news organizations have documented, Eric Schneiderman has been obsessed with using his political office to persecute his political enemies and protect his political allies.
“We look forward to telling voters the truth about Eric Schneiderman and exposing him for the power hungry, political opportunist he is and I will fight this ridiculous charge."