Jury begins deliberations in Bongiovanni retrial

Jury deliberations in the bribery and corruption retrial of former DEA agent Joseph Bongiovanni are underway.

Jurors were given instructions on each charge Thursday morning before retiring to the room where they will discuss each of the 11 remaining charges of which he is accused.

Bongiovanni, 60, stands accused of using his position as a DEA agent to protect drug dealers he thought were associated with Italian organized crime from investigations. Prosecutors say he took cash payments that totaled more than $250,000 from the Ron Serio drug-trafficking organization. He is also accused of protecting Peter Gerace Jr., the Pharaoh’s Gentleman’s club owner, who is charged with crimes related to his alleged drug and sex trafficking within the club in another federal case.

The jury in Bongiovanni’s first trial could not reach a verdict on bribery counts against him, but found him guilty on one count of obstruction of justice and one count of lying to federal agents over a case file kept in his home after his retirement.

Jurors acquitted him of deleting data on his DEA-issued cellphone when he retired. They could not reach a verdict on 12 other charges.

Before the retrial began, U.S. District Court Judge Lawrence J. Vilardo dismissed one of the bribery counts against Bongiovanni alleging he took cash payments from Gerace.

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The retrial, which began Aug. 5, included testimony from 65 witnesses – 62 called by the prosecution and three by the defense – over 28 days. The previous trial saw 70 people testify for the prosecution and five for the defense. None of the defense witnesses at the first trial – including his mother and wife – returned to testify at the retrial.

As retrial comes to an end, attorneys put Joseph Bongiovanni's fate in a jury's hands

Jurors heard closing arguments Wednesday. Prosecutors spent four hours recounting the testimony of witnesses and document evidence, working to convince jurors that it all adds up to Bongiovanni tipping off drug traffickers and inserting himself into cases that targeted those drug-trafficking organizations so that he could end the investigations. Meanwhile, Bongiovanni’s attorneys painted a picture of an overzealous prosecution that produced weak and circumstantial evidence.

The charges Bongiovanni faces include bribery, conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to distribute controlled substances; obstruction of justice, related to reportedly false entries in DEA memos and reports about his dealings with Gerace; and making false statements to a U.S. agency for denying he initiated contact with Gerace or witnessed Gerace use narcotics.

Vilardo will hear other cases Friday, so deliberations will resume on Monday.