A Miami federal juror was charged with soliciting a bribe from a defendant’s family, in exchange for offering to hang up the jury in a cigarette-smuggling case.
BY JAY WEAVER
A Miami federal juror who lived in his car was charged Thursday with trying to extort a $20,000 bribe from relatives of a man standing trial on charges of conspiring to smuggle cigarettes from South Florida to Europe.
Italo Campagna, a food and vegetable wholesaler, was arrested by the FBI Wednesday after he met with the defendant’s brother in Miami Beach to finalize the alleged bribery deal, according to a criminal complaint. The brother was acting at the direction of the FBI, which the family had notified.
Campagna, a dual U.S.-Venezuelan citizen, allegedly tried to extort the bribe by promising he could influence the verdict in favor of defendant Arturo Marrero, the complaint said.
Campagna, 56, will be held at the Federal Detention Center until his bond hearing Tuesday in Miami federal court.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Frazier proposed a $20,000 bond, but it’s unclear if Campagna would be able to post it. Another problem: He needs to find a permanent address to be released on bail.
After Campagna’s arrest, U.S. District Judge Marcia Cooke declared a mistrial in the cigarette case before prosecutors had finished presenting their evidence. The trial began last week.
