Renee Chenault-Fattah explains her part in the indictment of her husband, Rep. Chaka Fattah, in a letter she forwarded to the NBC-owned station WCAU.
As part of the charges against her husband and some associates, the federal government alleges the WCAU anchor, her husband,and two others “falsified records, including a bill of sale and paperwork” for a 1989 Porsche Carrera convertible.
“[W]e starting (sic) purchasing a home in the Poconos in the winter of 2011,” wrote Chenault-Fattah. “Two weeks before the close, the mortgage said a new law went into effect (this was Jan of 2012) and we were required to put $18,000 in reserve. It could not be a gift or a loan.”
“Knowing this and not having an extra $18,000, I decided to sell my second car – a Porsche. A family friend agreed to buy it last minute and we sold the car for its blue book value…a bill of sale and transfer of title were conveyed to the friend.”
In the letter, Chenault-Fattah goes on to explain why the car remains at the Fattahs’ Philadelphia home. “…the car stayed at our house (we have 3 garages and the friend lives in a apartment) , for a time I continued with insuring it since it was in our garage and wanted nothing to happen to it, and I had it towed to be serviced in the spring because I wanted it to be in good shape for the friend since this transaction had happened so hastily in the dead of winter. It has remained undriven in our garage for 3 years now because on advice of counsel…. we were instructed to do nothing with the car.”
She added, “I know this was a legitimate sale but this not likely to go away anytime soon.”