Lawyer: Probe of mayor would be 'swiftly closed'

LOSANGELES—Alawyerforthemayor ofPalmSpringssaidonWednesdaythathis clientwaswillingtocooperatewithauthorities who raided City Hall this week and expected any probe of his client's activities would be "swiftly closed."

FBI agents and members of a local public corruption task force descended on Palm Springs City Hall on Tuesday armed with search warrants, sending home employees and closing the offices for the day.

Law enforcement agents also seized several items covered under the search warrants from the home of Mayor Steve Pougnet,accordingtoanFBIspokeswoman.

The FBI and officials with the Inland Empire Public Corruption Task Force have declined to discuss the nature of the searches or reveal if Pougnetwasthetarget of the investigation.

No suspects were taken into custody during the raid and Pougnet, a 52-year-old Democratwhowasfirstelectedin2007,has not been arrested or charged in the case.

Attorney Malcolm Segal would not say if federal authorities had informed him or Pougnet that the mayor was under investigation.

But Segal said his client was willing to cooperate with the investigation and that he expected it to be concluded quickly.

"I just don't see anybasistobelieve, upon a careful and thorough review of Mr Pougnet'sactivitiesasthemayorofPalmSprings, thattherecanbeanyotherconclusionthan to believe that the matter should be swiftly closed," he said.

Theraidcameroughlythreemonthsafter the state's Fair Political Practices Commission opened a probe into links between Pougnet and a local real estate developer.

ThatmovefollowedreportsintheDesert Sun about the mayor's business relationships with that developer and an editorial saying he owed voters an explanation.

In a post on his website in May, Pougnet responded that with the articles the newspaper"threwtheirhatinwiththehandfulof politically motivated detractors who have madeaccusationsaboutmyjobasaconsultant and my integrity as your mayor."