Watch CBS News

Judge Drops Bail To Nearly $1.2M For LA Assessor Accused Of Corruption

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA/AP)—The bail amount was lowered slightly for the Los Angeles County assessor and the tax consultant accused of bribing him to have taxes lowered on his clients' properties.

A judge Monday dropped Assessor John Noguez and Ramin Salari's bail from $1.4 million to $1.16 million, which is the amount of money the District Attorney claims the alleged scheme cost taxpayers.

Noguez and Salari were arrested last Wednesday and charged with more than 20 felonies as a result of an ongoing investigation into fraudulent conduct at the assessor's office.

The District Attorney claims Noguez accepted $185,000 in bribes from Salari between Feb. and Sept. 2010 in exchange for lowering property values in Los Angeles for Salari's clients.

Noguez's lawyer had requested $100,000 bail and Salari's lawyer had sought $575,000 bail.

KCAL9's Joy Benedict said the judge shot down those requests because of abuse of trust and allegations against an elected official.

A third defendant, Mark McNeil, was released after posting $1.1 million bail.

RELATED STORIES:

LA County Assessor John Noguez Awaits Bail Hearing

LA County Assessor John Noguez Pleads Not Guilty To Felony Charges

County Assessor John Noguez, 2 Others Arrested In Corruption Investigation

(TM and © Copyright 2012 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2012 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.