A coroner in Illinois confirmed that Hastert died at his home over the weekend from natural causes. Kendall County Coroner Jacquie Purcell confirmed his death on Monday and gave no further details. Former US House Speaker Dennis Hastert has died at the age of 84.
Hastert became the highest-ranking former US elected official to serve a prison sentence, after he was convicted of violating federal banking laws. The scandal involved hush-money payments linked to sexual abuse allegations.
Hastert investigation and prison sentence
A federal judge gave Hastert a 15-month prison sentence. Hastert was also ordered to pay a $250,000 fine. Hastert ultimately spent 13 months in federal prison. He was released in 2017, after serving most of his 15-month sentence.
The investigation found that Hastert had repeatedly taken out large amounts of cash from banks. The money was later found to have been paid to one of the people he had sexually abused. During the court proceedings, Hastert admitted that he had sexually abused boys while he was their wrestling coach. The admissions brought the abuse allegations into the center of the federal case. US District Judge Thomas M. The judge also ordered him to take part in a sex offender treatment program. The prison sentence marked a dramatic fall for a former House Speaker.
Durkin called him a “serial child molester” during sentencing, according to CBS News. Hastert had once been one of the most powerful Republicans in Washington, but the revelations about his past and his criminal conviction ended his political legacy, according to CBS News.
