by Lucio R. Borderland Beat
At the close of the Austin
Texas Zetas Money Laundering trial, a stunning addendum intruded the Austin
courthouse, when prosecutors made aware
the business partner and the son of defendant Francisco “Pancho” Colorado Cessa, [below left] had attempted to execute a scheme that would bribe a U.S. District Court judge, on
behalf of Colorado, for a favorable sentence.
In another one of those situations which could
have easily been created in Hollywood, Francisco Colorado Jr. and Ramon Segura
attempted to bribe the presiding judge, planning to pay him 1 million USD.
Judge Sparks was never
aware of the scheme. The plot included;
an informant, secret meetings with undercover agents, code words and a fictitious
story by the agents saying the judge had accepted the deal.
Colorado Jr. and Seguro
pleaded guilty in exchange for Cessa receiving a light sentence, of about one
year. They were released and deported to
Mexico, where they promptly declared they were railroaded by the U.S.
government and were innocent.
For his part
Cessa pleaded with the judge to punish him but allow his son to go free. He then pleaded guilty. He attempted to withdraw his guilty plea, but
the presiding judge, in the bribery case, Donald Walter, ruled against Cessa rescinding
his plea, saying “he had implicitly accepted the plea agreement”, thereby was
prevented from repealing the agreement.
He was sentenced to 5 years.
He was sentenced to 5 years.
But a federal 5th
U.S. Circuit Court of appeals, found in disagreement with the presiding judge, concluding
that he had the right to rescind the plea agreement.
The conviction
was overturned.
