Suspended judge, co-defendants to plead guilty in federal fraud case
There will be no federal trial for suspended Family Court Judge Steven Jones and five co-defendants charged in a $3 million investment fraud scheme.
Jones and four co-defendants — Thomas Cecrle, Constance Fenton, Mark Hansen and Terry Wolfe — are scheduled to plead guilty Wednesday before U.S. District Judge Jennifer Dorsey, according to the court docket. Their trial had been set for later this month.
Cecrle, the judge’s former brother-in-law, is considered the central figure in the scheme.
Last month, defendant Ashlee Martin pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering under a pretrial diversion agreement.
The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported last week that Jones agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. His agreement with prosecutors has not been publicly filed.
All of the remaining co-defendants are expected to plead guilty to the same charge in a group deal that allows them to obtain lighter sentences.
As part of his deal, Jones will resign from the bench and give up his law license, his lawyer Robert Draskovich said last week.
Prosecutors have agreed not to ask for more than 27 months in prison for the longtime judge at his sentencing, Draskovich said.
The six defendants were indicted by a Las Vegas federal grand jury in late October 2012.
Jones, 56, first elected to the bench in 1992, was suspended with pay by the Nevada Commission on Judicial Discipline after the indictment. He did not run for re-election, and his term expires at the end of the year.
The indictment alleged that between September 2002 and October 2012, the defendants persuaded people to lend them money under the guise of quick repayment with high interest rates. The defendants indicated they needed the money to secure valuable property and water rights, including land on the Strip.
Jones also was accused of using his office to further the decade-long scheme and intervening on Cecrle’s behalf to prevent or delay legal processes against him.
Contact Jeff German at jgerman@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-8135. Find him on Twitter: @JGermanRJ.
