Connecticut State Sen. Dennis Bradley Jr. and former Bridgeport Board of Education chairperson Jessica Martinez surrendered Tuesday to U.S. Marshals in New Haven after being indicted on federal charges in connection to Bradley's 2018 campaign, federal prosecutors confirm to News 4 New York.
The 8-count federal indictment charges Bradley and Martinez with conspiracy, wire fraud, and making false statements in connection to his 2018 run for Connecticut State Senate.
According to the federal indictment, "in his 2018 campaign for State Senate, Bradley and other entered into a conspiracy and scheme to defraud the Connecticut State Election Enforcement Commission, the Citizens' Election Fund, and the State of Connecticut by making misrepresentations concerning Bradley's compliance with state election law and the Citizens' Election Program's statutory restrictions and requirements in order to fraudulently obtain or attempt to obtain $179,850 in campaign grants."
Bradley was first elected in 2018 to represent the 23rd state Senate district, which includes Bridgeport. His position as deputy majority leader was rescinded Tuesday by Connecticut Senate Pro Tempore Martin Looney, who also removed Bradley as co-chairman of the General Assembly’s Public Safety and Security Committee, which oversees issues ranging from police and fire training and emergency preparedness to state building codes and legalized gambling.
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Bradley was also removed from all other remaining committee assignments, Looney said.
According to Bradley’s legislative bio, he is an attorney at Bradley, Denkovich & Karayiannis Law Group, a civil litigation and personal injury law firm. He also served as chairman on the Bridgeport Board of Education from 2015 to 2019.
Martinez still serves on the Bridgeport school board after being removed as chairperson last year, the Connecticut Post reported.
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News 4 New York reached out to Bradley's office for comment. Attorney information for him and Martinez was not immediately known.
