In legal filings and interviews, former Ohio Republican Party leader Matt Borges has said federal investigators are lying about his role in a nearly $61 million bribery scheme and hiding documents.
On Friday, Assistant U.S. Attorney Matt Singer wrote that Borges should check the 1.5 million pages of documents the government has provided about the extensive case.
Borges was one of five people arrested in July 2020 in connection with a nearly $61 million bribery scheme to elect Republican Larry Householder as Ohio House speaker, pass a $1 billion bill to bail out two nuclear plants and defend that law against a ballot initiative to upend it.
Borges and Householder have pleaded not guilty to the offense. Two others, Householder's strategist Jeff Longstreth and FirstEnergy Solutions lobbyist Juan Cespedes, have pleaded guilty. The final defendant, lobbyist Neil Clark, died by suicide in March.
Ohio Statehouse Corruption:Who you need to know in the federal bribery case
Borges disputes the FBI's characterization of his involvement in the scheme. Through his attorneys, Borges is asking a federal judge for details about FBI agent Blane Wetzel's testimony to a federal grand jury to declassify recorded conversations between Borges and GOP consultant Tyler Fehrman, whom Borges is accused of bribing.
Singer replied that the government has already forked over 1.5 million pages of discovery, recordings and copies of co-defendants' iCloud accounts and devices.
Brady material, evidence that is favorable to a person accused of a crime, must be turned over by prosecutors to defense attorneys. However, Singer wrote: “Brady does not require the government to act as a private investigator and valet for the defendant, gathering evidence and delivering it to opposing counsel.”
Borges: FBI agent made 'numerous false and misleading statements' about $15K payment
Federal prosecutors informed Borges that multiple individuals recalled that Borges' involvement in the alleged scheme began with the ballot initiative to block the bailout bill. However, other interviews suggest Borges was on calls about the bill as it worked through the Ohio Legislature.
"As explained to defense counsel on multiple occasions, the government is aware of its obligations and will abide by them," Singer wrote.
U.S. District Court Judge Timothy Black will rule on the requests. Borges declined to comment on the government's filing.
Jessie Balmert is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Akron Beacon Journal, Cincinnati Enquirer, Columbus Dispatch and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.
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