The Federal Bureau of Investigation released documents detailing a man's alleged offer to make Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant's 2003 rape case go away by killing his accuser.
In the 17-page document that was released last week, the person who allegedly made the $3 million offer was not identified, but the man claimed he was from Switzerland and had a California driver’s license.
The man was later identified by other news outlets as Patrick Graber, a bodybuilder who lived in a Los Angeles suburb. Graber, then 31, allegedly tried to collect $1 million payment in the scheme but was instead arrested in September 2003 by FBI agents and the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.
The probe started after Bryant’s bodyguards received a FedEx envelope with a letter it in describing the plan.
Graber pleaded no contest to grand theft and was sentenced to three years in prison and was subsequently deported after his release.
Bryant was in Vail, Colorado prepping for knee surgery in July 2003 when a woman accused him of raping her in a hotel room. Bryant was arrested but denied raping the woman and the case was dismissed after his accuser said she did not want to testify at trial.
The woman filed a civil suit against Bryant, which was settled out of court.
Bryant and seven others, including his 13-year old daughter, Gianna, died on Jan. 26, 2020, from injuries following a helicopter crash.
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