A Wake County grand jury indicted state Rep. Thomas E. Wright, a Democrat and top lieutenant of former N.C. House Speaker Jim Black, on Monday on charges of swindling banks, corporations and campaign contributors out of more than $350,000.

Wright, 52, serving an eighth term representing his Wilmington district, faces five felony charges of obtaining property by false pretenses and one felony charge of obstruction of justice. If convicted on all charges, he faces a maximum prison term of about 11 years under the most common sentencing guideline.

Wright did not return a message left on his cell phone Monday.

The indictment follows a long criminal investigation into Wright's use of money meant for his campaign and for charity, including evidence he spent campaign money at retail outlets such as Victoria's Secret and Home Depot.

The charges further chip at the image of the legislature. Less than a year ago, Black, a Matthews Democrat, resigned in disgrace and pleaded guilty to accepting payoffs. He is serving a five-year federal prison sentence.

Wright was one of his closest subordinates in the House leadership. Starting in 2003, Black appointed Wright to powerful chairmanships of the House's budget and health committees. Wright proved a key vote in Black's election as speaker in 1999.

'Moral will'

Joe Sinsheimer, a former Democratic campaign researcher, focused attention on Wright with a complaint about his campaign finance records to the State Board of Elections a year ago. Sinsheimer wondered whether House Speaker Joe Hackney, a Chapel Hill Democrat, will show "the political courage and moral will" to try to expel Wright.

"Like his political godfather, Jim Black, Rep. Wright is an embarrassment to the state and no longer deserves to be in the General Assembly," Sinsheimer said in a statement.

Hackney said only that the indictments were disappointing and involved allegations dating back several years, which should not reflect on the legislature's work this past year. "I look forward to continuing to move ahead," Hackney said in a statement, "and doing the people's business in a way that will make them proud."

Rep. Danny McComas, a Wilmington Republican, called the indictment "the second bucket of ice water that comes our way," an allusion to revelations in May from an elections board hearing that led to some of the charges.

"It's a sad day in the history of New Hanover County and in the history of North Carolina," McComas said. "My heart, my thoughts and my prayers go out to him and his family."

Bogus letter

The most serious charge is that in 2002 Wright persuaded a state official to write a bogus letter to help him secure a bank loan.

Wright, as president of the Community's Health Foundation in Wilmington, was trying to buy a building in the city's downtown. Witnesses testified in elections board hearings that Wright got Torlen Wade, director of the Office of Research, Demonstrations and Rural Health Development, to write a letter promising $150,000 in state money toward the building's renovation.

Wright and Wade knew that no state money was coming, the indictments charge.

Wright used the letter to help persuade Coastal Federal Bank to loan the foundation $150,000. Wright ended up with the building but owing both the bank and the family that sold the building. The bank foreclosed, and the family never got its money.

Wade was placed on leave from his job and retired in July. Wake County District Attorney Colon Willoughby said he does not expect any charges against him.

The grand jury also indicted Wright for failing to report $185,000 in campaign contributions that he pocketed between 2000 and 2007. He is accused of spending money at Victoria's Secret and Circuit City and using campaign money for airline tickets, gas and hotel rooms.

According to the indictments, Wright also fraudulently secured a $10,000 line of credit from a credit union for the foundation in 2001. He withdrew the money for his own use and without the knowledge of the foundation's board, according to the indictment.

Three indictments were on charges of soliciting $8,900 in contributions in 2003 and 2004 from corporations for the foundation to help with the purchase of the building and with educational and minority health-care programs in New Hanover County. Wright used the money himself and falsely told the donors that the foundation was a charity and that the donations were tax-deductible, the indictments say.

Anheuser-Busch donated $5,000, AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals $2,400 and AT&T $1,500.