Judge Axes Attorney from Criminal Case, Says He ‘Played a Major Role’

Attorney Rufus Cook can't continue to represent a defendant accused of defrauding real estate investors because he "played a major role in these underlying transactions," a federal judge in Chicago says.

U.S. District Judge James Zagel removed Cook from the case Tuesday, after prosecutors accused him of receiving nearly $500,000 from the defendant in the alleged Ponzi-like scheme, Robert Anthony Bryant, reports the Chicago Tribune.

Zagel also said Cook is conflicted out because he likely will be a witness in the case against his client, the newspaper reports.

Bryant has pleaded not guilty to charges that he defrauded buyers of more than $1 million and lied to get a $3.5 million loan, and Cook calls the accusations against him "lies" and "distortions," the Tribune article says.