Breaking: FBI: Birmingham Mayor arrested on federal charges

[RB TexLa]

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The FBI says the mayor of Birmingham, Ala. has been arrested on federal charges.

FBI Spokesman Paul Daymond said Larry Langford was taken into custody around 7 a.m. on Monday. It isn't immediately clear what charges he faces.

Authorities are planning to say more at a morning news conference.

Langford was president of the Jefferson County Commission before he was elected mayor last year. He's been accused in a Securities and Exchange Commission lawsuit of taking more than $156,000 from a friend whose firm made millions on risky bond transactions that has pushed the state's largest county to the brink of bankruptcy.

Langford has denied wrongdoing.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081201/ap_on_bi_ge/birmingham_mayor_1