Opinion ID: 1314537
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Sufficiency of the Evidence of the Consulting Contracts Bribe

Text: Spadoni argues that there is insufficient evidence to support the jury's verdict finding him guilty of bribery and wire fraud with respect to the consulting contracts bribe or the jury's finding that the corresponding racketeering act was proved. Specifically, he claims that the government failed to produce sufficient evidence to enable a reasonable jury to conclude, beyond a reasonable doubt, that Spadoni intended to influence Silvester to increase the size of the Triumph-Connecticut contract. We disagree. Spadoni argues that the government never produced any evidence that he and Silvester ever discussed increasing the size of the investment contract or that Spadoni had any indication that Silvester was considering such an increase. It is true that Silvester did not testify that he explicitly indicated that he would increase the size of the investment contract. However, he did testify that he asked Spadoni for contracts by which Triumph would pay Silvester's associates finder's fees, which would be a percentage of the total investment contract amount. According to Silvester, Spadoni told him that while Triumph could not pay finder's fees to Silvester's associates at that time, Triumph would be happy to work it out when Silvester left office. Trial Tr. vol. 5, 161. Silvester testified that he interpreted this response as an agreement to work out the details of an arrangement economically identical to a finder's fee. The jury could have credited this testimony and inferred that Spadoni agreed to percentage-based contracts in order to induce Silvester to maximize the return to his associates by increasing the size of the investment contract. Additionally, the jury heard evidence indicating that Stack's contract was signed a day before the investment contract was executed; that the Stack and Thiesfield consulting contracts were fraudulently postdated until after Silvester left office; and that  just like Silvester's proposed finder's fee arrangement  the Stack and Thiesfield contracts assigned them no real duties but paid the two of them 1% of the amount of the investment contract. The jury could reasonably have credited this evidence and found it to support the inference not only that Spadoni was aware that the consulting contracts were corrupt, but also that he intentionally structured them so as to conform to Silvester's proposal and to give Silvester an incentive to increase the size of the investment contract. Spadoni argues that even if the evidence was sufficient to warrant a reasonable jury's finding that he likely possessed the requisite intent, it was not sufficient to support this conclusion beyond a reasonable doubt. However, viewed in the light most favorable to the government, the foregoing evidence strongly indicates Spadoni's guilt. Spadoni's efforts to obstruct the investigation evidence a consciousness of guilt that further supports the jury's verdicts. See United States v. Robinson, 635 F.2d 981, 986 (2d Cir.1980) (finding evidence of obstruction of the government's investigation admissible to show consciousness of guilt); see also United States v. Malpiedi, 62 F.3d 465, 467 (2d Cir.1995) (similar). Accordingly, the jury's verdicts were supported by sufficient evidence. [11]