Federal prosecutors are asking to drop their case accusing former Arkansas state Treasurer Martha Shoffner of spending thousands from her campaign on personal items and said they'll present evidence of the spending when she's sentenced in a separate bribery case.
Prosecutors on Tuesday asked U.S. District Judge Leon Holmes to dismiss 10 counts of mail fraud against Shoffner over the campaign spending accusations. Shoffner was convicted earlier this year of steering state investments to a bond broker who had given her cash over the years and is awaiting sentencing.
Holmes earlier this month rejected Shoffner's attempt to plead guilty to one count of mail fraud after she told him she didn't intend to divert campaign contributions to her personal use when she solicited them.
In a statement, U.S. Attorney Christopher Thyer wrote:
What Ms. Shoffner did was wrong on many levels—not the least of which was the breach of the trust placed in her by the electorate. However, at this time, it is best to move forward with sentencing on the bribery and extortion convictions, and we anticipate presenting evidence related to the mail fraud at that time.
