A federal judge abruptly dismissed the jury in the high-profile Brooklyn drug-trafficking trial of former heavyweight boxer Goran Gogic after prosecutors said three men tried to bribe a juror with $100,000 in cash.
According to The Associated Press, the trial, which was minutes away from opening statements on Monday, will now be delayed at least 30 days.
When proceedings resume, a new anonymous jury will be selected, according to federal prosecutors in Brooklyn. Judge Joan Azrack set a conference for Dec. 17.
Gogic, a Montenegrin former professional boxer, is accused of helping orchestrate an international scheme to smuggle 20 tons of cocaine from Colombia to Europe using commercial cargo ships routed through U.S. ports. He has pleaded not guilty. His attorney did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Francisco Navarro told the court that three individuals approached one of the jurors and offered to pay him $100,000 in exchange for a not-guilty vote. Navarro said the men may have obtained the juror’s information from “individuals connected to this trial,” raising concerns about a broader breach.
The three suspects — Mustafa Fteja, Valmir Krasniqi, and Afrim Kupa — were arrested and charged in connection with the alleged bribery plot. Fteja was released on a $150,000 bond after a hearing on Tuesday. Krasniqi and Kupa were ordered held pending further proceedings. None were required to enter pleas during their initial court appearances.
Gogic’s lawyer, Joseph Corozzo, informed his client that the trial would not begin as planned.
Federal officials have described Gogic as a “major drug trafficker” who moved cocaine on a “mammoth scale.” Court records say he worked with ship crews to load cocaine from speedboats into cargo containers near ports in Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru.
The FBI’s criminal complaint outlines how the alleged bribery scheme unfolded from Thursday to Sunday.
According to investigators, Fteja already knew the juror — identified only as “John Doe #1” — and contacted him repeatedly before they met on Staten Island. During that meeting, Fteja allegedly told the juror that associates in the Bronx would pay for a not-guilty verdict.
A second meeting followed two days later, where Fteja allegedly raised the offer to between $50,000 and $100,000. Prosecutors say investigators obtained recordings of the men discussing the plot in both English and Albanian.
Gogic faces charges under the Maritime Drug Law Enforcement Act and could receive 10 years to life in prison if convicted.
Prosecutors said U.S. authorities intercepted three major cocaine shipments tied to the smuggling network, including 1,437 kilograms seized on the MSC Carlotta in New York and New Jersey in 2019, and 17,956 kilograms seized aboard the MSC Gayane in Philadelphia that same year.
The Philadelphia seizure — valued at more than $1 billion — remains one of the largest cocaine busts in American history.
