Boston consultant ID'ed as FBI mole

BOSTON, Nov. 10 (UPI) -- A Boston businessman is the undercover FBI informant at the center of corruption charges against a state senator, The Boston Globe reported Monday.

The newspaper, citing multiple sources, says Ron Wilburn, 69, a well-known business figure in Boston's black community, is the shadowy figure seen handing cash to Dianne Wilkerson, Massachusetts' only black state senator, on government surveillance tapes.

FBI agents say in affidavits they video- and audio-taped an unnamed confidential witness handing money to Wilkerson ostensibly for her help in obtaining a liquor license. The witness, the Globe confirmed, is Wilburn, a longtime consultant to minority business ventures in Boston, probably best known as a 1980s associate of the late entrepreneur Bertram Lee.

The Globe said interviews with three of Wilburn's associates confirmed its information. Wilburn did not respond to the Globe for repeated requests for interviews.

Wilkerson has said she will resign her state senate seat in the wake of the 18-month investigation, for which no trial date has been set, the newspaper said.