RALEIGH - Rep. Thomas E. Wright admitted to the State Bureau of Investigation that he pocketed $8,900 in corporate checks intended for a nonprofit health foundation, calling the money "sweat equity" for unspecified work, according to papers filed Tuesday at the General Assembly.

The statement could come back to hurt Wright as he prepares for a historic hearing on whether the House should expel him for ethics violations.

Wright, a Wilmington Democrat, is the latest state legislator caught up in a series of investigations into official corruption in Raleigh. Those investigations led to the conviction of former House Speaker Jim Black, a Matthews Democrat, and others. Wright also faces criminal charges in connection with $350,000 in money that investigators say was mishandled.

A special House committee could meet as soon as March 3 to hear evidence and possibly recommend discipline, including expulsion. On Tuesday, lawyers working for the committee filed a list of witnesses they might call.

One of the possible witnesses is SBI Special Agent Johnnie Umphlet. On Oct. 5, he interviewed Wright about checks from Anheuser-Busch, pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca and AT&T to The Community's Health Foundation, which Wright ran.

Wright admitted that he received, signed and deposited each check into a personal bank account, according to Umphlet. The three checks totaled $8,900.

"He called his reimbursement 'sweat equity,' " according to the witness list, which includes a summary of Umphlet's findings.

"When asked what kind of work he had done, he stated that he would save that, that he did not want to incriminate himself, as it looked like the investigators were trying to build a case against him," the summary said.

Wright videotaped most of the interview, as well as another interview Sept. 28, according to Umphlet.

Efforts to reach two attorneys for Wright for comment Tuesday were unsuccessful.

Other possible witnesses include an IRS employee, who is expected to say that Wright's foundation was not properly registered as a charity, and a Wilmington doctor, who is expected to say that the foundation's board of directors never met and that he never saw any corporate bylaws.

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