The scandal of Jack Abramoff (pictured) may be ancient history, but it continues to yield up legal news, as the fallout rains down. There was Guam’s lawsuit against Abramoff’s former firm, Greenberg Traurig, which was recently dropped. And now there’s this, from today’s Washington Post:

A former high-ranking official in the Justice Department pleaded guilty yesterday to accepting thousands of dollars worth of meals and sports tickets from Republican lobbyist Jack Abramoff in exchange for helping a variety of Abramoff’s clients.

Robert E. Coughlin II, the former deputy chief of staff of the Justice Department’s criminal division, became the latest of more than a dozen public officials, lobbyists and congressional staff members to be convicted or to plead guilty in the wide-ranging federal investigation of Abramoff’s activities.

As part of his plea agreement, Coughlin, 36, agreed to cooperate with investigators, making him a potentially important witness in the ongoing scrutiny of Rep. John T. Doolittle (R-Calif.). Coughlin acknowledged performing a variety of official acts for Kevin A. Ring, a key member of Abramoff’s lobbying team at Greenberg Traurig and a former legislative aide to Doolittle. Coughlin and Ring are longtime friends who worked together on Capitol Hill a decade ago.

More discussion, after the jump.

Kevin Ring, Coughlin’s contact over at Greenberg Traurig, sounds like an exuberant and colorful character:

Ring often sprinkled meal invitations with requests for aid. He invited Coughlin to attend an April 2001 meeting at Justice about the Choctaw jail grant “so some of the clowns there know that I have friends, if you get my drift.” After that meeting, Ring treated Coughlin and his wife to a $300 meal at Olives.

When the grant was approved a year later, Ring sent Coughlin an e-mail with the subject line: “Choctaw CHA-CHING!!!!”

“Thanks is not strong enough,” Ring wrote to Coughlin. “We need to celebrate this issue finally being over.” Three days later, Ring bought Coughlin lunch at Signatures.

Ah, Signatures — RIP. That space is now occupied by the seafood restaurant D’Acqua. But if you’re in that neighborhood, you can get a better meal at Central Michel Richard (where you can dine at the bar if you can’t get a table).

In 2006, Coughlin won an award from then-Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales for his efforts to prevent fraud and white-collar crime. Gonzales said at an awards ceremony that Coughlin deserved recognition for “exceptional dedication and effort to prevent, investigation, and prosecute fraud and white-collar crimes.”

Maybe Coughlin was just conducting a sting operation?

Top Justice official admits Abramoff fueled his regal life [McClatchy Newspapers]
Ex-Official Linked to Abramoff Pleads Guilty [Washington Post]