NEW YORK, NY – Dionisio Figueroa, an employee of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, and Telesforo Del Valle Jr., a criminal defense attorney, have been charged yesterday with bribery and making false statements. They participated in a scheme in which Figueroa referred criminal defendants to Del Valle and encouraged them to retain Del Valle as counsel in exchange for cash payments from Del Valle to Figueroa. Figueroa was responsible for making data entries regarding official case events in criminal cases and ensuring that appearance bonds were signed by all parties prior to a defendant’s release.
The alleged scheme took place between 2011 and 2022, during which time Figueroa referred at least 45 criminal defendants to Del Valle, who paid Figueroa tens of thousands of dollars in referral fees. Many of the clients who ended up retaining and paying Del Valle were assigned free, court-appointed counsel, and Figueroa encouraged those individuals to change counsel. Figueroa and Del Valle are also charged with making false statements to law enforcement during the investigation.
The charges against Figueroa and Del Valle include conspiracy to bribe a federal employee, bribery of a federal employee, illegal compensation to a judicial employee, and false statements. If convicted, they face a maximum potential sentence of five to 15 years in prison.
The case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Public Corruption Unit. The charges contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
