A former FBI agent has acknowledged erasing documents related to the 2018 corruption prosecution of a pro-Trump former state lawmaker from Arkansas.

According to KATV-TV, Robert Cessario entered a guilty plea on Wednesday to the allegation of “corrupt destruction of record in an official proceeding.”

Cessario consented to a plea agreement with the prosecution.

The former agent acknowledged erasing documents that a federal judge had asked for analysis in the case against Arkansas state senator Jon Woods.

As part of the plea agreement, Cessario admitted, “I erased the contents of the computer hard [drive] knowing that the court [had] ordered that the computer be submitted for a forensic examination.”

“I did so with the intention of making the contents of the computer’s hard unavailable for forensic examination. At the time, I knew that the contents of the hard drive were relevant to an official proceeding.”

“I corruptly performed and had performed, the erasures with intent to impair the integrity and availability of the computer hard drive and its contents for use in that official proceeding.”

In exchange for providing state monies to Ecclesia College, Woods accepted bribes from the institution, and he was found guilty of wire fraud. The Arkansas Times reports that he is currently serving an 18-year jail term.

The state’s first lawmaker to support Donald Trump for president was Woods. He still challenges his conviction, citing Cessario’s destruction of evidence as one of his arguments.

The computer had audio recordings of conversations between Woods and state representative Micah Neal of Arkansas, according to The Blaze.

The court requested 119 recordings in all from the computer. Cessario supplied 39 of them and made arrangements for the other files to be deleted at a computer store.

More on this story via The Western Journal:

Woods’ lawyers have alleged other improprieties involving Cessario in their client’s prosecution. CONTINUE READING…