Lewis Reed, Bribery, Missouri 2022

A former St. Louis Board of Alderman president and a former alderman have been caught in a bribery scheme that ran from 2020 through March 2022. Lewis Reed, the former board president, pleaded guilty to two bribery-related charges in front of U.S. District Court Judge Stephen R. Clark on Friday.

Reed admitted accepting $6,000 in cash and $3,500 in campaign contributions from a businessman, identified in court documents as a St. Louis businessman, to help the man obtain Minority Business Enterprise certification and win city trucking and hauling contracts. He also admitted accepting a total of $9,000 in cash bribes to get a property tax abatement for a Doe-owned property located in the ward of former alderman John Collins-Muhammad.

Reed worked with Collins-Muhammad to pass a board bill providing the property tax abatement. Collins-Muhammad pleaded guilty on Tuesday to charges related to the bribery scheme.

Former 22nd Ward Alderman Jeffrey L. Boyd pleaded guilty in a separate hearing to two bribery-related charges and two counts of wire fraud in an unrelated insurance fraud scheme. He admitted accepting a total of $9,500 in cash bribes from the businessman in exchange for the misuse of his official position.

Boyd helped the businessman obtain a commercial property on Geraldine Avenue in Boyd’s ward from the city’s Land Reutilization Authority by convincing LRA staff to accept the businessman’s $14,000 bid. The LRA initially listed the property as worth $50,000. In addition to the cash, Boyd accepted free repairs from the businessman for two vehicles owned by Boyd.

The insurance fraud scheme occurred after a Jan. 17, 2021 vehicle accident at the businessman’s used car lot in Jennings, Missouri. The crash damaged vehicles including three cars owned by the businessman and one owned by Boyd’s used car company.

Reed and Boyd are scheduled to be sentenced on December 6. One of Reed's bribery charges carries a 10-year maximum and the other has a five-year maximum. Each charge could also result in a $250,000 fine. Boyd's wire fraud charges carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Both will be required to pay restitution equal to the value of the cash bribes and other things of value received during their schemes.

The FBI investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Hal Goldsmith is prosecuting the case.

The guilty pleas bring an end to a bribery scheme that has shaken the city of St. Louis. Both Reed and Boyd have betrayed the public trust, and their actions will not be tolerated.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-edmo/pr/former-st-louis-board-alderman-president-and-former-alderman-plead-guilty-bribery-other