Federal prosecutors brought trumped up charges against a Hollywood associate of "Girls Gone Wild" creator Joe Francis, two ex-sheriff's deputies and a jail worker to pressure them to implicate Francis in an alleged bribery scandal, a lawyer said.
Attorney David Houston said Francis, his client, was targeted by the FBI after Washoe County Sheriff Mike Haley told federal agents that his internal probe turned up allegations of misconduct at the end of 2007.
Francis was awaiting trial for nearly a year on U.S. tax evasion charges in Reno in 2007.
Prosecutors accuse Francis associate Aaron Weinstein, a video and marketing executive, of bribing the law enforcement officials, including former deputy Michon Mills, with money and gifts that included a Cartier watch and Oakland Raiders tickets in exchange for preferential treatment for Francis.
