A Houston woman is in jail, accused of trying to bribe one Harris County judge and threatening to kill another.
The Gulf Coast Violent Offenders Task Force says 34-year-old Kamelia Nunez was found hiding in a closet inside her apartment when she was arrested this week.
Investigators say Nunez sent two checks to Judge Jean Spradling in October with the promise of more money if the judge agreed to work with the sender.
At the time, deputies say a man Nunez had a relationship with was in Spradling’s court charged with possession of Xanax. But instead of dismissing the case, the drug charge against the man was upgraded to a felony.
That put the case in front of Judge Brad Hart. Hart tells KHOU 11 Investigates he began receiving messages at both his home and office.
At first the judge says the sender offered to do anything the judge wanted if he’d let the drug suspect go free. Then, weeks later, Hart says he received a text message warning if he didn’t let the man off, “consider yourself dead.”
KHOU 11 Investigates discovered investigators obtained a search warrant for Hart’s phone records. This week, Nunez was charged with bribery for the case involving Judge Spradling and retaliation for the threat against Judge Hart.
Hart praised the Harris County Sheriff’s Office for cracking the case and says he feels a lot better now that there’s been an arrest.
Meanwhile, Melissa Morris, the attorney representing Nunez called the case a “gross misunderstanding,” and predicted once all the evidence is presented, Nunez will be cleared of all charges. She also denied investigators’ claims that Nunez had a relationship with anyone facing charges in Harris County.