Judge dismisses criminal conviction tied to ex-Orange County assistant DA accused in federal bribery probe
That ruling, handed down on Tuesday by Judge Hyun Chin Kim, cited an “egregious violation” of the law in the 2023 cryptocurrency theft case involving Martin Soudani.
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An Orange County judge has now dismissed the guilty plea and conviction at the center of a federal bribery scandal involving a former top county prosecutor.
That ruling, handed down on Tuesday by Judge Hyun Chin Kim, cited an “egregious violation” of the law in the 2023 cryptocurrency theft case involving Martin Soudani.
Soudani was investigated by then Orange County Executive Assistant District Attorney Stewart Rosenwasser who the feds indicted for taking $63,000 in bribes from Soudani's uncle, Moutz Soudani, to prosecute the case during a decades-long family dispute involving allegations of rape and incest.
Rosenwasser allegedly killed himself during a shootout with the FBI last month. He had resigned from office in June.
A special prosecutor from the Rockland County District Attorney’s Office was assigned to oversee the request to overturn Soudani’s guilty plea.
Soudani’s attorney, Arthur Middlemiss, issued a statement saying, “The Rockland District Attorney’s Office concluded that Martin’s conviction could not stand and consented to our motion. The court’s decision makes clear that Martin’s conviction was a travesty of justice.”
Soudani served a year in jail and was on parole.
His attorney also plans to sue Orange County.
The Orange County District Attorney’s Office has previously said it was unaware of Rosenwasser’s alleged actions but had no comment on the ruling.
