- Office of the Inspector General
Media Contact for Two of Former Fall River Mayor Jasiel Correia’s Co-conspirators Sentenced for Extorting Marijuana Vendors
Jack Meyers
Two associates of former Fall River Mayor Jasiel F. Correia II have been sentenced for their roles helping Correia extort money and property from business owners seeking to open licensed marijuana dispensaries in the city. Both men testified about Correia’s extortions during his federal trial earlier this year.
Defendant Antonio Costa pled guilty in September 2019 to two counts of extortion, two counts of extortion conspiracy and one count of lying to federal agents. At Correia’s trial, Costa testified that he acted as the middleman for bribes that two separate marijuana vendors paid to Correia in exchange for letters of non-opposition and host community agreements (HCA). To be licensed in Massachusetts, a marijuana establishment must receive a letter of non-opposition and execute an HCA with the municipality in which it intends to be located.
On June 28, 2021, Costa received a sentence of three years of probation, with the first 15 months spent under home confinement with electronic monitoring. U.S. District Court Judge Douglas P. Woodlock also ordered Costa to forfeit $107,550 and pay a $10,000 fine.
Defendant Hildegar Camara pled guilty in September 2019 to two counts each of extortion, extortion conspiracy and making false statements to federal investigators. At Correia’s trial, Camara testified that he facilitated bribes between two marijuana vendors and the mayor.
On July 21, 2021, Judge Woodlock sentenced Camara to three years of probation, including 18 months of home confinement and 150 hours of community service per year while he is on probation.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecuted these cases. The charges resulted from a joint investigation involving the Massachusetts Office of the Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Division and the U.S. Housing and Urban Development’s Office of the Inspector General.
For more information, see the U.S. Attorney’s Office press releases here and here.