By Sondra Washington
Four months ago, Houston County casino owner Ronnie Gilley dared the Task Force on Illegal Gambling to arrest him if his slot machine-style gambling devices at Country Crossing entertainment complex were illegal. Now, his bluff has been called twice — except the federal government, not the task force, is holding the better hand.
Last October, Gilley, gambling magnate Milton McGregor and several legislators and lobbyists were arrested and indicted on federal charges for a vote-buying scheme at the Alabama Statehouse surrounding last year’s gambling expansion bill.
Recently Gilley was placed on house arrest when his attorney, Doug Jones, asked for a delay on a hearing regarding new bribery allegations. This time, Gilley is accused of bribing Jarrod Massey, his former lobbyist and co-defendant.
On Jan. 6, attorneys for the federal government filed a motion to revoke the order of pre-trial release for Gilley accusing him of trying to bribe Massey who recently reached a plea agreement with the government and became a witness for them.
When the original charges were brought against Gilley and the other defendants, Gilley was released on an “unsecured bond of $500,000” as long as he did not “commit a federal, state or local crime during the period of release pending trial,” the motion states. Yet prosecutors submitted that Gilley “knowingly” offered “money or a thing of value in order to corruptly persuade” Massey “with the intent to influence, delay or prevent the testimony of Jarrod Massey in an official proceeding and to cause or induce Jarrod Massey to withhold testimony from an official proceeding.”
The motion added that Gilley also violated his bond by failing “to avoid all contact, directly or indirectly, with any person who is or may become a potential witness in the investigation or prosecution” by attempting to bribe Massey on numerous occasions — once during court proceedings for the case.
According to the Dothan Eagle, Gilley originally responded to the allegations on his Facebook page stating, “What’s going on here is not right and it’s as unjust as it gets. But I do continue to have faith that God is working behind the scenes on our behalf so that goodness shall prevail.”
The paper reported that Gilley had asked his friends and Country Crossing supporters for prayer at that time.
“As you all know, I have faith in my friends, my family, my employees, my partners, prayer, and most of all God,” he reportedly wrote. “I am asking each and every one of you to pray for me and my family as we need it right now.”
But until his Jan. 31 court appearance, Gilley reportedly cannot travel outside his home except for medial or religious reasons, and his phone calls are limited.
The Dothan Eagle also reports that U.S. District Judge Myron Thompson, who is in charge of the corruption trial has ordered that selected jurors be partially sequestered and “in the custody of the U.S. Marshals during the hours the trial is in session.”
The trial date is set for April 4.
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