We begin with a bombshell indictment.

South Jersey Democratic powerbroker George Norcross was charged with racketeering today by New Jersey's Attorney General, Matt Platkin.

The 13 count indictment charges Norcross with running a criminal enterprise that used coercion, extortion and other criminal acts to obtain property on the Camden waterfront and through that acquisition, collect millions of dollars in government tax credits.

He's accused of using threatening language to intimidate a land developer, saying he'd, quote, put a bat over his head, among other things, and of allegedly influencing legislation to benefit himself, allegedly saying in a recording this is for our friends.

And the indictment names five other defendants involved in that criminal enterprise, including former Camden Mayor Dana Redd, George Norcross, his brother Philip, his lawyer, Bill Tambussi, and business partners Sydney Brown and John O'Donnell.

This indictment alleges that a group of unelected private businessmen used their power and influence to get government at the state and local levels to aid their criminal enterprise and further its interests through their alleged acts.

The Norcross Enterprise was able to obtain the rights to build multiple buildings and obtain hundreds of millions of dollars in government issued tax credits, among other benefits.

That stops today.

And yes, that is George Norcross sitting in the front row staring down Attorney General Platkin.

Norcross is widely considered one of the most powerful, non-elected political leaders in the state and has led the South Jersey political machine for decades.

Joining me now is investigative reporter Jeff Pillets who's long covered the Norcross machine and was in the room when the indictment was announced.

Jeff, thanks so much for being with us.

You were there in the room.

You saw firsthand, as I just mentioned, George Norcross literally staring down the attorney general as these allegations were dropped.

But let's just take it back for a minute.

This really stems from tax incentives that were given out in 2013 under then Governor Chris Christie.

At the time, we know there was very little state oversight into what happened with those tax incentives.

But can you just help us understand what some of these allegations are that are being that George Norcross and five other coconspirators are being charged with?

Yes, Basically, Attorney General Platkin is saying that Norcross has been conducting a criminal enterprise for at least a decade, and it basically had to do with getting control of properties in downtown Camden on the waterfront that were subject to gain from this extraordinary tax break that was that you mentioned before.

So it's.

Norcross manipulating other agencies, manipulating property owners, manipulating approvals in the city of Camden, in the county of Camden.

So he and his business partners could get control of these properties.

That's the allegation.

And then he says to take it a step further.

Profited millions right, in tax incentives over the years.

And I think he said a hundred million more.

What were the numbers?

He's his him and his business partners directly got $287 million worth of tax breaks approved for that.

They have not all received them yet.

They get paid out every year incrementally.

But he's Platkin mentioned that there's still maybe over $200 million of these tax breaks that George and his business partners and others that are associated with him in downtown Camden are liable to get that They're still eligible for those in the years to come.

The attorney general cited text messages, recorded phone calls where there are threats of physical violence.

Other things that we can't say on this air.

On PBS's really emboldened allegedly recordings.

Does it surprise you to see this body of evidence against someone like George Norcross?

Yes, I think in writing.

It does, because New Jersey does not have that history of going after the state of New Jersey, doesn't have the history of going after its own with this sort of with these sorts of weapons and tools.

We have at least two or three grand juries that I'm told of.

We've had a years long investigation.

This is a serious deal.

They're going after George Norcross on a RICO count.

We're talking about extortion.

We're talking about racketeering.

This is about as gnarly as it gets.

So Michael Critchley is representing George Norcross.

They held a press conference immediately after the attorney general's press conference today.

He calls the charges bogus.

He's also furious.

He says that the grand jury never interviewed Norcross or, I believe, any of the coconspirators.

Did you stay for that follow up?

And what do you make of their response?

Yes, I did.

I stayed for it, Mr. Mister.

His attorney is a very great showman, and it's pretty much standard practice that the target of and of a grand jury, the target is not really interviewed in front of the grand jury.

And that's for the trial to happen.

You know, so yet they're saying their claim is that all this is just a vendetta by by the attorney general, that he was embarrassed for other things.

He was embarrassed because his investigation of the tax breaks never yielded much.

So that's what they were claiming.

But they specifically they were claiming that that they never really got a chance to address these allegations, which is pretty much standard practice from George Norcross and his attorneys.

Just a few seconds left.

What do you make of him sitting in that front row?

Was that an intimidation tactic and could that potentially hurt him down the road in front of a jury?

I think it wasn't intimidation tactic.

I think the attorney general indirectly called it intimidation tactic.

I in his 25 years as a reporter in Trenton.

I never saw anything that that ballsy in my in my experience, it was creepy.

And that's George Norcross.

Yeah.

Well said.

We'll leave it there.

Jeff Pillets investigative reporter, thank you so much for taking the time today.

Thank you, Joanna.