AP Photo/Philip Marcelo
Fall River Mayor Jasiel Correia speaks beside his attorney Kevin Reddington outside the federal courthouse, Friday, Sept. 6, 2019, in Boston, after his appearance on bribery, extortion and fraud charges.
- Jasiel F. Correia II, the 27-year old mayor of Fall River, Massachusetts, was arrested Friday morning by the FBI.
- Federal prosecutors have charged him a slew of crimes, including extorting legal marijuana businesses for hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash bribes.
- Correia appeared in federal court on Friday and pleaded not guilty.
The 27-year old mayor of Fall River, Massachusetts, was arrested Friday morning and charged with a slew of crimes, including extorting legal marijuana businesses for hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes, federal prosecutors said.
Jasiel F. Correia II, the mayor, was arrested along with his former chief of staff, Genoveva Andrade. Beyond the bribes, Correia has been accused of extorting a building owner for cash and a Rolex watch in exchange for activating the water supply to a commercial building, and demanding that his chief of staff give him half of her salary in return for appointing her and allowing her to keep her city job, according to prosecutors.
The charges include bribery, extortion conspiracy, extortion and aiding and abetting, wire fraud, and filing false tax returns, according to the US Attorney for the District of Massachusetts. Both Correia and Andrade appeared in federal court on Friday afternoon.
"Our three-year investigation has brought to light certain revelations regarding the marijuana industry in Fall River, including the calculated use of middle men and bribe payments associated with backroom deals for those seeking the green light to open up their own stores," FBI special agent Joseph R. Bonavolonta said in a statement. "In many ways, it's a perfect storm of corruption: the combination of a highly competitive industry and a mayor who was solely responsible for approving all non-opposition letters in the city."
According to the indictment, Correia agreed to issue non-opposition letters to cannabis businesses - which are required under state law - in exchange for cash bribes. Prosecutors said the bribes ranged from $100,000 to $250,000, and included campaign contributions. Marijuana was also exchanged for resale, according to prosecutors.
State-regulated cannabis businesses in Massachusetts are required to obtain non-opposition letters from the local head of government to open their business. Correia, who was solely responsible for issuing the letters in Fall River has so far issued 14 non-opposition letters, including two for his girlfriend's brother, prosecutors said.
'Nobody's getting a special deal, a special anything'
"In so doing, Correia publicly stated that 'Nobody's getting a special deal, a special anything,'" Correia said in the indictment, per The New York Times. None of the marijuana vendors were identified in the documents.
Beyond the non-opposition letters, Correia and Andrade were accused of an elaborate scheme where Andrade would kick back large sums of her salary to Correia, prosecutors said.
Andrade was quoted in the indictment telling an unnamed marijuana vendor about the kickback scheme. "[Y]ou want to hear something even more f---ed up … I have to give [Correia] half of my salary," Andrade said, per the indictment. Between December 2017 and July 2018, Andrade kicked back approximately $22,800 to Correia, the FBI said.
Correia pleaded not guilty in court on Friday and was released on bond, The Times reported. Prosecutors said the wire fraud and extortion conspiracy charges each yield a sentence of up to 20 years in prison and severe fines of over $250,000 each, if Correia is convicted.
Correia is also no stranger to controversy. He took office in 2016 at age 24, the youngest mayor in Fall River's history. He was previously accused of federal fraud and tax evasion charges while mayor, and subsequently ousted from office, The Times reported. He was re-elected in a recall election in March.