Federal prosecutors have decided to drop the criminal case against Maryland attorney Jeremy Wyeth Schulman, who was accused of participating in a scheme to illegally access over $12.5 million in Somali government assets from financial institutions. U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis granted the prosecutors’ request to dismiss the indictment against Schulman “with prejudice,” indicating they will not seek to reopen the case. The decision to dismiss the case was based on prosecutors’ evaluation of pre-trial evidentiary rulings, although specific details were not provided.
Schulman’s defense team had previously urged the judge to dismiss the case, claiming that prosecutors engaged in tactics to avoid gathering evidence favorable to Schulman and withheld information crucial for his defense. They also argued that the government’s delay in bringing the case forward hindered the defense from presenting testimony from witnesses who could have refuted the charges.
Schulman expressed relief that the legal ordeal has come to an end, acknowledging the toll it has taken on him but emphasizing the support he received from friends, family, and clients throughout the process. Despite facing damaging allegations from the government, Schulman managed to sustain his law practice and underscored the importance of the presumption of innocence in the judicial system.
The indictment against Schulman, issued in December 2020, included charges such as wire fraud, mail fraud, bank fraud, and money laundering. The case stemmed from a Justice Department investigation that began a decade ago, with Schulman being made aware of the probe in January 2017. The indictment accused Schulman and others of seeking to illegitimately gain control over frozen assets of the Central Bank of Somalia, amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars due to civil unrest in the African nation.
Although a trial for the case was scheduled to commence in December, the judge’s decision to dismiss it came after she acknowledged the government’s reluctance to involve witnesses supportive of Schulman’s defense. Defense attorney Stanley Woodward noted that prosecutors opted to drop the case following the judge’s ruling favoring the defense on the admissibility of crucial evidence, indicating that the prosecutors realized the case was not viable.
In response to the dismissal of the indictment, Schulman’s defense team expressed satisfaction with the outcome and reiterated their commitment to upholding justice in the legal proceedings.