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 The planned guilty plea in a Chicago federal court, first
disclosed earlier this month, would mark a dramatic downfall for
someone who once ranked among the country's most powerful
politicians.
Hastert, 73, was charged in May with trying to hide large cash
transactions as part of a payoff scheme and lying about it to the
Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Prosecutors and defense attorneys have not said to which charge
Hastert would plead guilty or whether his sentence might include
incarceration. A plea deal may not allow Hastert to avoid jail time
but does likely avoid the public release of potentially embarrassing
information about the case.
Federal prosecutors have accused him of agreeing to pay $3.5 million
to an unidentified person from his hometown of Yorkville, Illinois,
to conceal past misconduct. Hastert was a teacher at Yorkville High
School in the 1960s and 1970s.
 That person has not surfaced publicly but anonymous law enforcement
sources have told several media outlets that Hastert was trying to
cover up sexual abuse of a male student when he worked as a high
school teacher and wrestling coach.
Hastert, who has been free on bond and has not spoken publicly since
his indictment, is expected to be in court on Wednesday.
Hastert was the longest-serving Republican speaker, leading the
House for eight years before leaving Congress in 2007 and becoming a
lobbyist.
After his indictment, Hastert resigned from the Dickstein Shapiro
lobbying firm in Washington, D.C., and from the boards of exchange
operator CME Group Inc and REX American Resources Corp.
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According to the indictment, Hastert withdrew $1.7 million in cash
from his bank accounts from 2010 to 2014. He is charged with
structuring $952,000 of the withdrawals, taking the funds out in
increments of under $10,000 to evade a requirement that banks report
large cash transactions.
Hastert told the FBI he was keeping the cash for himself, which the
indictment said was a false statement.
Each of the charges carries a possible maximum sentence of five
years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
(Reporting by Mary Wisniewski; Editing by Bill Trott)
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