If you like Michael Jackson and Bruce Lee memorabilia, fur capes and sheer mink jackets, the U.S. Marshals Service has the auction for you.
Starting Tuesday, collectibles belonging to disgraced Rep. Jesse Jackson, Jr. will be sold to the highest bidder to help him repay the $750,000 in campaign funds that he illegally spent on personal items.
The dozen or so items, which are being sold online through the auction house Gaston & Sheehan at txauction.com, show the Chicago Democrat's interest in pop culture — demonstrated by his numerous framed, matted and signed photos and albums, including Michael Jackson's "Blood on the Dance Floor" — and his taste for the extravagant.
Two mink-lined cashmere capes are up for auction, as well as a fur, mink-hooded parka. A woman's mink black jacket with silver fox sleeves is in the mix, too.
Jackson, 48, was sentenced to two and a half years of prison last month after he pleaded guilty in February to using campaign funds for personal expenses. He is to report to prison in November.
Jackson's wife, Sandra, was also sentenced to a year in prison for filing false joint federal income tax returns.
The auction runs through Sept. 26. It's not clear how much money it could raise, but the sales will be subtracted from how much Jackson owes.
Jason Rzepniewski, an auctioneer at Gaston & Sheehan, said this is not the first big name his auction house has represented for U.S. Marshals. The auction house also auctioned off some of Bernie Madoff's assets.
