Jurors spent their first full day Thursday deliberating the case of a former federal drug agent accused of corrupt activities without reaching a verdict.
The jury will resume at 9 a.m. Friday, considering 15 felony charges, including accepting bribes, conspiracy to distribute drugs and making false statements, against retired U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agent Joseph Bongiovanni.
The former agent has been on trial for six weeks in the court of U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. Vilardo.
Vilardo had to replace a juror with an alternate on Thursday, after the juror became ill.
In response to a question from the jury, the judge provided them with a printout of Bongiovanni’s government expenses related to wiretaps and other investigation techniques over a period of 11 years. The jury also asked for records showing the number of phone calls between Bongiovanni and Peter Gerace Jr., the owner of Pharaoh's Gentlemen's Club.
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Bongiovanni denies the accusations, which include charges of accepting bribes from Gerace and from a local drug ring run by Ron Serio.
The jury also asked to see a DEA case file that Bongiovanni had in the basement of his home when it was searched by federal agents.
Contact Mike McAndrew at mmcandrew@buffnews.com
