Meanwhile, federal prosecutors won guilty pleas or convictions for six smugglers who claimed they knew or worked with Sister Ping.

In retrospect, Walsh clearly played a valuable and important role in prosecuting North and Poindexter and in winning guilty pleas from their lesser associates.

Since Christopher J. Christie became the United States attorney for New Jersey in 2002, his office has won convictions or guilty pleas from nearly 100 elected officials.

He ultimately helped prosecutors win guilty pleas or convictions from nine people.

The indictment was the culmination of work by prosecutors who won guilty pleas from five of Mr. Ebbers's subordinates, including Mr. Sullivan.

During his tenure, Christie's office won convictions or guilty pleas from 130 public officials, both Republican and Democratic, on the state, county and local levels.

State and federal prosecutors have won several guilty pleas after uncovering evidence that some state agencies awarded lucrative business contracts to the governor's friends and supporters without seeking competitive bids.

He also said that his office has also won more corruption convictions and guilty pleas than Mr. Christie, who has earned wide acclaim for his prosecution of political officials.

He has won convictions or guilty pleas from more than 60 public officials, eliciting praise from the defense bar and attracting the attention of several national publications.

But even as those two cases stalled, prosecutors have won guilty verdicts and guilty pleas in dozens of other white-collar crime cases, including the conviction of Martha Stewart last month.