SAINT PAUL, Minn. — At his press conference Wednesday announcing charges in the case of an attempted $120,000 juror bribe, U.S. Attorney Andy Luger began by saying, "We learned that an unknown woman showed up at the home of a juror."
That unknown woman is 31-year-old Ladan Ali, Luger said.
At the Saint Paul Federal Courthouse on Thursday, Ali pleaded not guilty to the rare crime of corruptly influencing a juror.
"Corruption of a jury through intimidation or bribery is a serious federal crime that carries a significant prison sentence," Luger said.
On Wednesday, Luger highlighted how on May 30, Ali flew to Minnesota from Seattle where she also has ties and immediately began surveilling the youngest and only juror of color -- following her home from the courthouse.
Over three days, Ali allegedly drove by Juror 52's Spring Lake Park home 19 times. A heat map created by the FBI shows the amount of time Ali spent near the juror's home, according to her rental car's GPS data.
Directed by four men including three standing trial for stealing more than $40 million dollars from the federal child nutrition program, Ali and the other defendants are accused of a sophisticated plot to get to Juror 52 with money.
Authorities believe they then intended to deliver detailed instructions on how to convince the rest of the jury to vote not guilty -- primarily by accusing the government of being racist against the Somali immigrants.
After being driven back to Juror 52's house by, Abdulkarim Farah, Ali is accused of bringing $120,000 cash to the door and promising Jury 52's family member that more money would come after the not-guilty verdict.
"This is more than just a mob movie. This is a chilling attack on our system of justice," Luger said.
Luger stressed how rare the attempted bribe of a juror is nationwide. In fact, KARE 11 News was able to find only one other documented case in our state, in 1961, during an actual mob trial taking place in Minneapolis involving the "Kid Cann Liquor Syndicate."
"He is the absolute most notorious mobster in Minnesota history," said Twin Cities filmmaker Michael Greenberg, who studied Isadore "Kid Cann" Blumenfeld, hoping to turn his short film into a series.
"In the '60s, obviously times had changed and it was an act of desperation trying to bribe somebody that they had no previous relationship with," Greenberg said.
The mob bribe was unsuccessful -- just like in the Feeding our Future case.
The judge in the Kid Cann case called the attempted bribe an even more serious crime than the underlying liquor law trial.
Luger characterizes it as an assault on the integrity of the justice system.
"There is no higher priority than protecting that system," he said.
Ladan Ali will be free until her trial but is not allowed the leave Minnesota. Her codefendants are all in jail but will be asking a judge to be released during a hearing on Monday.
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