Alaska's Stevens Pleads Not Guilty

Stevens then sat quietly at the defense table as his lawyer asked for a speedy trial date and told the judge he intended to file a motion seeking to move the case to Alaska, where, he said, "90 percent" of the witnesses reside. Judge Sullivan indicated he probably would not grant that request.

The longest-serving Republican in the Senate, Stevens faces a five-year maximum prison term on each of the seven counts in the indictment. He is a larger-than-life figure in Alaska, where he is revered for bringing the state billions of dollars in federal aid.

Stevens is the highest-profile lawmaker to be indicted in an Alaska political corruption investigation that began in 2004 and has resulted in seven convictions.

Last year, federal agents searched Stevens's home in Girdwood, Alaska, which he affectionately called the "chalet," according to the indictment. The papers allege that Veco employees and contractors jacked up the senator's mountainside house on stilts and added a new floor.

Former Veco chief executive Bill J. Allen, who pleaded guilty last year to conspiracy and bribing public officials, figured prominently in the indictment. In 1999, Allen transferred a new Land Rover worth $44,000 to Stevens in exchange for the senator's 1964 Ford Mustang and $5,000 in cash, according to the indictment.

In exchange for the gifts, Allen and other unnamed Veco officials sought the senator's help with partnerships in Pakistan and Russia, with grants from the National Science Foundation and other federal agencies, and with a variety of other issues, the indictment said.

The indictment charges Stevens with make false statements in financial disclosure forms required under the Ethics in Government Act. The law mandates that elected officials disclose gifts that exceed a few hundred dollars and debts that exceed $10,000 at any time during the year.

Staff writer Paul Kane contributed to this report.