Rendell returns funds from two Hsu associates

HARRISBURG - Gov. Rendell is returning $7,000 in campaign contributions from two associates of Norman Hsu, a former fugitive now in custody and awaiting trial on fraud charges.

The move comes three weeks after the governor announced he was giving to charity nearly $38,000 donated directly to his campaign by Hsu, the disgraced Democratic fund-raiser.

Chuck Ardo, Rendell's press secretary, said the governor decided to return the additional contributions "because sufficient questions about the donors were raised in the media." Published reports, including those in The Inquirer, "raised red flags about the true source of the money," he added.

Last week, federal authorities in New York accused Hsu of running a Ponzi scheme that defrauded investors nationwide out of $60 million. Hsu, who has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for top Democrats, was also charged with reimbursing several unnamed donors for ...