Former Courtroom Bailiff Sentenced to Federal Prison

John E. Murphy, Acting United States Attorney, announced that 36-year-old Juan Alfredo Rede, a former bailiff in the 383rd District Court in El Paso, was sentenced today to 18 months in federal prison after admitting to scheming to defraud at least 10 individuals appearing in that Court by promising to manipulate their court records in exchange for cash.

In addition to the prison term, United States District Judge Kathleen Cardone ordered that Rede pay a $500 fine and be placed under supervised release for a period of three years after completing his prison term.

In July, Rede pleaded guilty to wire fraud. Beginning in January 2006, he admittedly approached individuals who were in Court because they owed past due child support. Each time, Rede initiated a solicitation scheme offering to manipulate court records to insure that those individuals would not go to jail, reduce their amount of court-ordered child support and lower their monthly payments. As a result of his scheme, Rede admitted that he pocketed between $2,000 and $2,500 per individual. No court documents appear to have been manipulated as a result of Rede’s fraudulent scheme.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation together with the Department of Homeland Security - Office of Inspector General. Assistant United States Attorney J. Brandy Gardes prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.