Former NC official to enter plea in fraud case

RALEIGH — A retired state official is facing a federal judge next week on charges that he took money from an ethanol company to expedite state environmental permits for a proposed plant.

The News & Observer of Raleigh reported Friday that Boyce Allen Hudson is expected to plead guilty at a hearing scheduled Tuesday before U.S. District Court Judge Terrence Boyle.

Federal prosecutors said in court documents that Hudson agreed in 2004 to expedite permits from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources in exchange for a $100,000 payment after he
retired in 2005.

A spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Raleigh didn’t immediately return e-mail and phone messages Friday seeking comment. Hudson’s attorney, John P. O’Hale of Smithfield, was in
court Friday and didn’t immediately return a phone message.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)