Dennis Hastert, former US House speaker, dies aged 84

Dennis Hastert, who served as Speaker of the US House of Representatives from 1999 to 2007, has died aged 84. Kendall County coroner Jacquie Purcell announced his death at home over the weekend. The Associated Press and Yorkville Patch reported that he died of natural causes; AP said he had been receiving hospice care. [2] [3]

Hastert was the longest-serving Republican House speaker. His later years were marked by a criminal case arising from cash payments connected to misconduct against a person identified in court papers as Individual A. [3] [6]

In 2016, Hastert was sentenced to 15 months in prison after pleading guilty to structuring bank withdrawals to avoid financial reporting requirements. He was not convicted of a sexual offence. His plea agreement recorded a promise to pay Individual A $3.5 million to compensate for and keep confidential earlier misconduct. It said he paid about $1.7 million; the banking offence concerned $952,000 withdrawn in smaller transactions. [6] [7]