Opening statements in the trial of Jasiel Correia, the former mayor of Fall River, kicked off the first high-profile jury proceeding in Boston since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The arguments took place before barely two dozen people dispersed around a 2,600-square-foot courtroom, with hundreds more watching on Zoom.
But the arguments themselves had a familiar ring for a white collar case. Prosecutors claimed Correia absconded with investor cash, about two-thirds of the $363,690 he was given for his app, SnoOwl. After he was elected mayor at the age of 24, he allegedly shook down recreational cannabis businesses in exchange for his blessing to open in the South Coast city.
"This is a case about lying, cheating, stealing and shakedowns, and the man behind it all is seated right there," Assistant U.S. Attorney Zachary Hafer told the jury, pointing at Correia. "A politician who betrayed the investors in his startup company by stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars and a politician who betrayed his constituents by selling his power to benefit himself."
But Correia's lawyer, Kevin Reddington, told the 11 women and three men on the panel that Correia never took a dime that he did not believe was his. The alleged middlemen who the government says helped Correia bribe the marijuana businesses are lying to save themselves, Reddington said, merely echoing prosecutors who are dangling lengthy prison terms over their heads.
"The government ran out of paper giving out their immunity agreements and plea agreements here," Reddington said as he gesticulated and paced in a small circle during his opening.
"He loved Fall River," Reddington added of Correia. "He still loves Fall River."
As the former mayor scribbled notes and watched from a few feet away through a plexiglass wall between the counsel tables, Hafer told the jury the defendant had duped investors in his app into writing checks payable to himself and went on to cash many of them. He used the money on Tiffany jewelry for his girlfriend, new suits for himself, a Mercedes-Benz, $27,000 in luxury hotel stays, $10,000 in high-end dining, adult entertainment and a personal trainer, the prosecutor said.
Correia, who won a recall election after the first charges but was then soundly defeated in a regular election after the second batch of charges, took his girlfriend on a historic helicopter tour of Newport, Rhode Island, and made a donation to an aquarium, which then named a room after him, Hafer said.
But Reddington countered that Correia never told investors he would not receive a salary for his work on SnoOwl, an app meant to connect consumers to nearby businesses based on what they were looking to buy.
"Prove it!" the defense attorney shouted as he slapped a cardboard box of papers. "Show one of these documents where it says he indicated to people, 'This isn't my job, I'm going to devote 24/7 and not draw a salary."
All of the investments were traceable and, as far as Correia knew, it was his money and he never said it wouldn't be used for personal expenses, his lawyer told the jury. Only later on when a document was signed with some "legal gobbledygook" was that made clear, but by then it was too late and the money had been spent, Reddington said.
"There was no intent to defraud, there was no intent to steal," he said. "He as much as anybody wanted this business to be a success."
Correia faces 24 counts of wire fraud, tax evasion for allegedly failing to report the money he reaped from SnoOwl, as well as bribery and conspiracy counts tied to the marijuana shops that hoped to open in Fall River and needed a letter of nonopposition from the mayor to do so. The charges were unveiled separately in October 2018 and September 2019.
Correia is also charged with forcing his former chief of staff, Genoveva Andrade, to fork over half of her salary, about $23,000, as a condition of employment. But Reddington told the jury his client was desperate to pay mounting legal bills after the first federal charges were brought and that Andrade was just trying to help out.
The case puts a spotlight on a state regulatory process for cannabis that has drawn criticism for being hands off and putting significant power in the hands of communities. Cities and towns can charge up to a 3% "impact fee," but industry insiders say they sometimes ask for additional donations. The practice has led to a lawsuit between a dispensary and the city of Haverhill.
The trial is expected to last several weeks. Testimony began Monday afternoon with Alec Mendes, Correia's roommate at Providence College and co-developer of an app whose success the defendant allegedly touted to SnoOwl investors. Mendes said the app, called Find It, made just a few thousand dollars.
Under guidance from Tufts University epidemiologists, the federal courthouse is limiting courtrooms to one person per 100 square feet of space. The jury box, made for 18 people, held just five socially distant people. Nine more were spaced out in three rows of three in the open area where counsel tables would normally be.
Attorneys, Correia, his fiancee and his mother sat at tables in what would be the front row of the gallery in a normal setup, with other staff and one media member spaced around the rest of the room.
U.S. District Judge Douglas P. Woodlock reminded Reddington to keep his mask over his nose after it slipped down multiple times during his demonstrative opening. He also reminded the attorney to stay "tethered" to his microphone so people on Zoom could hear him. Judge Woodlock said he will try to make the trial as safe and "normal" as possible, given the circumstances.
"It's good to be back, it's good to be back doing this with you," he told the jury. "It's important for all of us to go back to the work this country does."
The government is represented by Zachary R. Hafer, Carol E. Head and David G. Tobin of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts.
Correia is represented by Kevin J. Reddington of the Law Offices of Kevin J. Reddington.
The case is U.S. v. Correia, case number 1:18-cr-10364, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts.
--Editing by Orlando Lorenzo.
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