Former DEA agent Joseph Bongiovanni arrives at the Robert H. Jackson U.S. Court House for a hearing for an upcoming trial on drug and bribery charges with his attorneys, Parker R. MacKay, left, and Robert Singer, right, Wednesday, June 21.
Four years into wearing an ankle bracelet as an indicted ex-DEA agent, Joseph Bongiovanni now fears it could take well into a fifth year before he can try to clear his name in a courtroom.
A key witness in the bribery, sex- and drug-trafficking trial of strip club owner Peter G. Gerace Jr. has died, underscoring the risks of any more delays in his trial, a federal prosecutor said at a court proceeding Friday.
U.S. District Judge Lawrence Vilardo, whose approval would be necessary to discharge Steven M. Cohen from the case, asked for affidavits from Cohen or his client Peter Gerace within a week. He said he would decide how to proceed after learning more about their differences.
U.S. District Judge John L. Sinatra Jr. recused himself Wednesday from a high-profile bribery, sex- and drug-trafficking case less than two months before the scheduled start of the trial for the strip club owner and former DEA agent facing the charges.
Former DEA agent Joseph Bongiovanni arrives at the Robert H. Jackson U.S. Court House for a hearing for an upcoming trial on drug and bribery charges with his attorneys, Parker R. MacKay, left, and Robert Singer, right, Wednesday, June 21.
