Nov. 14, 2007 — A week after being indicted by a federal grand jury, three men pleaded not guilty on Wednesday to charges of conspiracy, bribery and obstruction of justice for their roles in an elaborate bribery and kickback scheme that resulted in a $1.4 million loss to the government.
During a quick arraignment hearing held in District Court, former commissioners Dean Plaskett and Marc Biggs, along with well-known St. Thomas contractor Leroy Marchena, requested a speedy jury trial. The trial date has been set for Jan. 7. Meanwhile, each defendant has been released on a $10,000 unsecured bond.
Plaskett and Biggs are charged with demanding and accepting a series of bribes and kickbacks in exchange for awarding approximately $1.4 million in contracts in which "little or no work was done," according to court documents.
The charges also include conspiracy to violate the federal bribery statute and commit honest services mail fraud, as well as multiple counts of federal program bribery. Plaskett, Biggs and Marchena are also charged with multiple counts of obstructing justice.
If convicted on all counts, Plaskett faces a maximum of 82 years in prison and a $2 million fine, Biggs faces a maximum of 37 years in prison and a $1.25 million fine and the 66-year-old Marchena — president of St. Thomas-based Antillean Contractors and Developers — faces a maximum of 45 years in prison and a $750,000 fine. All three defendants also face restitution and criminal forfeiture in excess of $1 million. (See "Grand Jury Indicts Plaskett, Biggs, Marchena for Conspiracy, Bribery.")
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