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Press Release

Local Woman Indicted On Fraud Related Charges

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of Missouri

St. Louis, MO – JILLIAN NICHOLS, a local paralegal, was indicted on charges involving her attempt to defraud a law firm client by falsely representing that the prosecutor on the client’s criminal case had solicited a bribe.  Nichols is also charged with lying to the FBI about her illegal conduct.
 
According to the indictment, Jillian Nichols worked for a local law firm, assisting one of the firm’s attorneys on his legal cases.  She had no formal legal training and was paid hourly. While she was working at the firm, she worked on the defense of a state felony criminal case pending in St. Louis County Circuit Court against a firm client.  As part of her duties, she worked closely with the client in investigating and helping prepare his defense, often meeting with him, as well as speaking with him on the telephone and texting, outside the presence of the defense attorney.  Nichols left the defense attorney’s firm in September, 2013.  After Nichols left the law firm, she continued to meet with the client and discuss his criminal case with him.  There was an assistant prosecuting attorney in St. Louis County assigned to the client’s criminal case. The indictment states that between June and December 2013, Nichols engaged in a scheme to defraud the client by falsely telling him that the prosecutor had solicited a payment of $10,000 in order to give favorable consideration in his pending criminal case. She falsely represented that she had favorable evidence “planted” on the client’s cell phone in order to support his defense. She also allegedly falsely represented that she had paid the forensic expert hired by the defense attorney to analyze his cell phone so that the expert would validate and verify the “planted” evidence.  On December 10, in response to Nichols’ false statements about the $10,000, the client agreed to give her an initial $5,000 in cash for her to pay the bribe to the prosecutor, and then an additional $5,000 after the prosecutor gave him favorable consideration in his pending criminal case. In order to conceal the scheme, she told the client not to tell his defense attorney of their discussions about purportedly bribing the prosecutor or planting evidence on his cellular phone.

Finally, the indictment alleges that Nichols lied repeatedly to the FBI about her involvement in the scheme when interviewed as part of their investigation in December 2013.

Nichols, St. Louis, Missouri, was indicted by a federal grand jury on one felony count of wire fraud and one felony count of making false statements.  She is expected to appear in federal court today.

If convicted, wire fraud carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and/or fines up to $250,000; making false statements carries 5 years and/or fines up to $250,000.  In determining the actual sentences, a judge is required to consider the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, which provide recommended sentencing ranges.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation-Public Corruption Task Force, including officers of the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department.  Assistant United States Attorney Hal Goldsmith is handling the case for the U.S. Attorney's Office.

As is always the case, charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt.  Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Updated March 19, 2015