HCCA Shannon Taylor refuses to bring international fugitive to trial

Evidence of collusion exhibited  in Henrico County Commonwealth Attorney's office in international fugitives case

Just days before the January 19, 2019 Motion To Dismiss thirteen indictments for conspiracy to distribute cocaine, the HCCA went into negotiations with the defendant Nickolas Spanos and his attorney Jay Pickus, who was recently retained to represent him.

What takes place over the following weeks have raised stronger suspicions of collusion between the HCCA and the FBI. The unanswered question of why Shannon Taylor and the Richmond FBI refuse to bring the defendant Nickolas Spanos back to Virginia to face allegations that he was the "hub of a 600 kilo cocaine distribution organization".

Further investigations produced evidence of the HCCA's main witness, an ex-girlfriend of Spanos, known as witness "L" in the grand jury indictments as not credible, with a history of mental illness, suicide attempt, and perjury.

The most damaging allegations is that witness "L" and the HPD investigator in the Spanos case, were having a personal relationship from 1999 which lasted a few years. The HPD investigator was later employed by the FBI Richmond office.

It is alleged that the original HCCA Howard Vick, knew of witness "L" lack of credibility and serious mental health problems, and later discovered about the personal relationship between his main witness and the HPD investigator.

During negotiations with Spanos's attorney Jay Pickus, the serious allegations surfaced in a blog titled "Henrico County Commonwealth Attorney's con artist Witness "L", in an attempt to keep the evidence from going public, the HCCA and the FBI, immediately moved to dismiss the federal UFAP warrant and the INTERPOL Red notice against Spanos. 

It is unheard of that the HCCA & FBI would support dismissing a federal UFAP warrant and an INTERPOL Red notice without the fugitive being arrested, arraigned and the indictments being decided in a court hearing.

The fact that witness "L" and the HPD investigator were allegedly having a personal relationship, combined with witness "L" serious mental history, including a suicide attempt which kept witness "L" in a St. Mary's hospital mental suicide watch for 48 hours, were never disclosed to Spanos's co-conspirators defense attorneys, which the HCCA was obligated to due so under the Brady Rule Law.

Brady Rule Definition: named after Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83 (1963), requires prosecutors to disclose materially exculpatory evidence in the government's possession to the defense. A "Brady material" or evidence the prosecutor is required to disclose under this rule includes any evidence favorable to the accused--evidence that goes towards negating a defendant's guilt, that would reduce a defendant's potential sentence, or evidence going to the credibility of a witness.

The serious implications is that the three co-conspirators pleaded guilty in plea bargain agreements, which they possible would not have if the exculpatory evidence was disclosed, as obligated by law, in which the co-conspirators went to prison for three to fifteen years. 

The biggest question goes unanswered by Shannon Taylor and the FBI, "why did Taylor refuse to extradite the fugitive from the Philippines, despite his arrest and U.S. embassy legal attaches demanding his extradition otherwise he would be deported to Greece, his safe haven."

A November 22, 2018 Motion for Transportation to be provided by the Commonwealth of Virginia from Greece to Virginia was submitted to Henrico Circuit Court. The defendant Spanos based his motion on case law that required the HCCA to have him escorted by federal marshals back to Virginia to be present for his January 19, 2019 hearing. 

A December 07, 2018 order signed by Judge Lee A. Harris denied the motion for transportation, which was not objected by HCCA Shannon Taylor. 

The obvious question stands out, why did Henrico Circuit court Judge L.A. Harris deny the motion to transport a suspected drug dealer who allegedly was the hub of an organization that distributed more than 600 kilos of cocaine in the Richmond area?

The other big question is who is Shannon Taylor protecting, in refusing to bring the fugitive back to Virginia? With the new evidence presented, that three generations of HCCA knew that the  main witness "L" with her history of serious mental history and they intentionally hid the exculpatory evidence from the co-conspirators defense attorneys? 

A prosecutors duty is to see that justice is served, if a main witness proves to be not credible or has serious mental issues, then the defense attorneys must be informed as per exculpatory rules. 

HCCA Shannon Taylor will have to disclose at some point on the exact reason who she is protecting and why Henrico County does not want the alleged cocaine dealer to appear in Henrico County.