4 takeaways from the trial of former Fall River Mayor Jasiel Correia
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BOSTON Within a short time of receiving several hundred thousand dollars from investors for his start-up app company SnoOwl, Jasiel Correia II spent more than half the money on travel, entertainment, luxury items and paying off personal debt.
Correia then attempted to hide those personal expenditures as business expenditures on his tax returns. He also hid from the IRS the fact that SnoOwl, a partnership, even existed, according to testimony Friday.
That was the gist of the government’s case on Friday against the former Fall River mayor, with the majority of the day’s testimony from IRS criminal investigator Sandi Lemanski, of the agency’s public corruption unit. Lemanski testified that over the course of three years, investors gave Correia a total of $358,190, but he wasted little time spending the money on personal use.
U.S. District Court Judge Douglas P. Woodlock will be presiding over the proceedings in Courtroom 1.
Correia faces a total of 24 counts, including tax fraud in relation to his app company, SnoOwl, and extortion and bribery charges in relation to an alleged pay-to-play scheme he created with marijuana vendors looking to do business in Fall River. Four days were set aside last week for jury selection, though that still needs to be completed today. Opening statements began today as well.
Dr. David Cabeceiras takes the stand
The prosecution, specifically David Tobin today, is very precise in its questioning. Many documents and time-stamped emails have been presented, and almost each time, witnesses are asked to first testify if the documents are authentic.
BOSTON “Lying, cheating, stealing and shakedowns. That’s what this case is about,” said Assistant U.S. Attorney Zachary Hafer on the first day of testimony in the Jasiel Correia II trial. “You will hear there was a price to pay in Fall River.
Witness testimony began Monday in the 24-count case of the United States versus Jasiel Correia II, whose fate will be decided by a jury that includes 11 women and three men.
In opening arguments, Hafer came out swinging as he laid out highlights to the jury regarding the case against 29-year-old Correia.
In his opening statement, defense attorney Kevin Reddington called into question “the legitimacy of witness testimony.” Three former associates have taken plea deals in exchange for their cooperation with the federal government for their role in an alleged extortion scheme hatched by the former mayor to take money from marijuana companies looking to do business in Fall River.
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