Juror Given Bag Of $120,000 With Note Urging Them To Acquit Defendants

A juror in a tax conspiracy trial was dismissed Monday (June 3) after reporting that a bag of $120,000 in cash was dropped at her home in an effort to sway her to acquit seven people charged, the Associated Press reports.

“This is completely beyond the pale,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Thompson said in the court. “This is outrageous behavior. This is stuff that happens in mob movies.”

The seven defendants are accused of stealing more than $40 million from a program intended to feed children during the COVID-19 pandemic and among 70 people facing trial in a conspiracy that cost taxpayers a total of $250 million. Eighteen others have pleaded guilty and authorities confirmed that they've recovered an estimated $50 million in relation to one of the largest pandemic-related fraud cases in the U.S.

The 23-year-old juror said the bag contained a note that said she'd receive another if she voted to acquit the defendants, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported. The woman said she immediately turned the bag of cash over to local authorities.

Defense Attorney Andrew Birell called the incident "a troubling and upsetting accusation" while addressing the judge in the courtroom on Monday. U.S. District Judge Nancy Brasel questioned the remaining 17 jurors and alternates and confirmed that none had reported any unauthorized contact similar to the incident involving the 23-year-old woman.

Brasel opted to sequester the jury for the remainder of the proceeding as a precaution.

“I don’t do it lightly,” Brasel said via the Associated Press . “But I want to ensure a fair trial.”

Two of the groups involved in the scam, Feeding Our Future and Partners in Nutrition, were small nonprofits prior to the pandemic before disbursing around $200 million each. The defendants are accused of producing invoices for meals that were never served, running inactive companies, laundering money, participating in passport fraud and accepting kickbacks, allegedly spending finances on luxury cars, jewelry, travel and property.