Background
No. 309 (April 17, 2019) was my first post about a federal criminal lawsuit against Greg E. Lindberg (Durham, North Carolina) and three associates. I provided updates in No. 320 (July 1, 2019), No. 338 (October 24, 2019), No. 355 (February 13, 2020), No. 361 (March 25, 2020), and No. 387 (August 13, 2020).
Lindberg is the founder and chairman of Eli Global LLC, an investment company, and the owner of Global Bankers Insurance Group, a managing company for numerous insurance and reinsurance companies. The other defendants are John D. Gray, a Lindberg consultant; John V. Palermo Jr., a vice president of Eli Global; and Robert Cannon Hayes, chairman of the state Republican party in North Carolina.
The defendants were charged with conspiracy to commit honest services wire fraud, bribery concerning programs receiving federal funds, and aiding and abetting. Hayes was also charged with making false statements. The case is in federal court in Charlotte under U.S. District Judge Max O. Cogburn Jr. (See U.S.A. v. Lindberg, U.S. District Court, Western District of North Carolina, Case No. 5:19-cr-22.)
Recent Developments
On February 18, 2020, the trial began. The defendants in the trial were Lindberg, Gray, and Palermo. Hayes had pleaded guilty before the trial. On March 5, 2020, the jury found Lindberg and Gray guilty. The jury found Palermo not guilty.
Lindberg and Gray filed motions for a new trial; the judge denied the motions. The government filed a motion for forfeiture of property as to Lindberg and Gray; the judge granted the motion. The government filed a sentencing memorandum on Hayes, and requested probation.
On August 12, the government filed a sentencing memorandum on Lindberg and Gray. For Lindberg, the government asked for a sentence of 168 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000. For Gray, the government asked for a sentence of 121 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and a fine of $35,000.
On August 12, Lindberg filed a response to the government's sentencing memorandum. He asked for a sentence of 12 to 24 months.
On August 13, Gray filed a response to the government's sentencing memorandum. Citing his advanced age, his health conditions, and COVID-19, he asked for a sentence of home confinement.
On August 19, sentencing developments occurred. However, as of 5:00 p.m. on August 21, the court docket contained no information about the sentencing developments. I learned about the sentencing developments through articles in The Wall Street Journal and the Charlotte Observer, both of which have been following the case closely.
On the night of August 19, Mark Maremont and Leslie Scism of the Journal reported that Lindberg was sentenced to seven years and three months in prison. They reported that a Lindberg attorney told the judge Lindberg plans to appeal, and asked the judge to allow Lindberg to remain free pending the appeal. They reported that the judge denied the request and ordered Lindberg to report to prison when directed by prison officials. The Observer reported that Hayes was sentenced to probation. I do not yet know what sentence has been imposed on Gray.
General Observations
Lindberg presumably will appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit in Richmond. I have not yet heard anything about the results of the investigation the judge ordered after he learned that a Lindberg consultant had conducted a "post-trial juror interview." I plan to report further developments.
Available Material
I am offering a complimentary 73-page package consisting of the August 12 government sentencing memorandum (18 pages), the August 12 Lindberg response (36 pages), and the August 13 Gray response (19 pages). Email jmbelth@gmail.com and ask for the second August 2020 package about Lindberg.
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Email: jmbelth@gmail.com
Blog: www.josephmbelth.com