Ex-Official Pleads Guilty to Conflict of Interest

A former Department of Education official has pleaded guilty in federal court to one misdemeanor count of conflict of interest that included using federal money to pay for personal expenses.

Eric G. Andell, a former deputy undersecretary for the department’s office of safe and drug-free schools, admitted April 29 that between November 2002 and September of the following year, he had approved official travel for himself 14 times.

The trips, according to a press release from the Department of Justice on Mr. Andell’s plea, were motivated at least in part by Mr. Andell’s “interest in private personal and financial matters.” The motivations, according to the release, included his “desire to accrue service time” toward a pension from...