With three more defendants in the Allied Veterans of the World gambling case accepting plea deals that keep them out of jail, a September trial seems more unlikely for the eight remaining defendants who continue to negotiate with prosecutors.
While accepting the deals Friday from three defendants, Circuit Judge Kenneth Lester said he will hold open a September trial date in case plea deals do not emerge from continuing talks between defendants and prosecutors.
“It’s still there,” Lester said.
The defendants still negotiating with prosecutors include former Jacksonville law enforcement officers Nelson Cuba and Robbie Freitas.
Cuba was president of the Jacksonville Fraternal Order of Police and Freitas was first vice president of the union when they were arrested. Freitas has since retired from the sheriff’s office, while Cuba remains on leave without pay.
The slow moving plea negotiations are normal, said statewide prosecutor Lisa Acharekar. “It’s not unusual given the magnitude of this case and the number of moving parts in the case,” she said.
Nearly five dozen people were arrested in what prosecutors described as a $300 million gambling and money laundering business operated through dozens of Internet cafes.
Prosecutors say Allied Veterans was touting itself as a charity, though only 2 percent of the money went to nonprofits.
Jacksonville attorney Kelly Mathis has appealed a six-year sentence in the case issued after a February trial. Prosecutors said he masterminded the scheme.
He was the only defendant to demand a trial, while principals of Allied Veterans have been allowed deals that kept them out of jail.