A juror was dismissed from a multimillion-dollar fraud trial on Monday after reporting that a woman dropped a bag of $120,000 cash at her home over the weekend.

A juror was dismissed Monday after reporting that a woman dropped a bag of $120,000 in cash at her home and offered her more money if she would vote to acquit seven people charged with stealing more than $40 million from a program meant to feed children during the pandemic.

“This is completely beyond the pale,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Thompson said in court on Monday. “This is outrageous behavior. This is stuff that happens in mob movies.”

These seven are the first of 70 defendants expected to go to trial in a conspiracy that cost taxpayers $250 million. Eighteen others have pleaded guilty, and authorities said they recovered about $50 million in one of the nation’s largest pandemic-related fraud cases. Prosecutors say just a fraction of the money went to feed low-income kids, while the rest was spent on luxury cars, jewelry, travel and property.

During the trial that began in April, defense attorneys questioned the quality of the FBI’s investigation and suggested that this might be more of a case of record-keeping problems than fraud as these defendants sought to keep up with rapidly changing rules for the food aid program.

  • @[email protected]
    0•7 months ago

    There’s no indication that this group attempting to bribe her are violent, and there was no explicit or implied violent “or else” threat, at least none mentioned in the AP and Star Tribune articles.

    • @[email protected]
      1•7 months ago

      I think the act itself implies the threat. If they have those resources and are willing to brazenly break the law like that no actual threat is needed.

      Even if they aren’t violent and have no intention of being so the implication is there.