Federal prosecutors in New York have filed charges against a well-known Miami defense attorney for his alleged involvement in a bribery conspiracy with two former U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration supervisors. The indictment accuses attorney David Macey of providing cash and gifts, such as Yankees-Red Sox baseball tickets, to the agents in exchange for confidential information on drug investigations. Macey is set to appear in federal court, with the specific charges yet to be disclosed.
Macey’s defense attorney, David Patton, has vehemently denied the allegations, stating that Macey is a respected attorney with a spotless record of nearly 30 years. The prosecution has shed light on the competitive world of high-priced defense attorneys in Miami known as the “white powder bar,” where attorneys vie for clients involved in drug-related cases.
The U.S. attorney’s office in Manhattan has not commented on the case, but prosecutors have previously referred to Macey as a “crooked attorney” who paid for DEA secrets. The charges come after court filings revealed Macey and another attorney, Luis Guerra, were accused of funding the bribery scheme. Intercepted communications between the attorneys and a former DEA agent turned private investigator were crucial in uncovering the alleged bribery activities.
The case underscores a series of corruption scandals involving DEA agents, including the convictions of Recio and Costanzo Jr. for bribery and wire fraud. Macey, a former state prosecutor, has handled high-profile cases in South Florida and gained prominence in narcotics and money laundering defense cases, which are known for their high fees.
The prosecution’s case relies heavily on text messages and wiretapped calls, with allegations that Macey sought confidential information from the DEA agents to benefit his clients. The unfolding scandal has drawn attention to the ethical standards within the legal community and the lengths some attorneys may go to secure an advantage in criminal defense cases.
Recio and Costanzo discussed the timing of high-profile arrests and the specific date in 2019 when prosecutors were planning to formally charge businessman Alex Saab, who was considered a major criminal target in Venezuela and suspected of being a bag man for the country’s president, Nicolás Maduro. Additionally, they talked about confidential DEA strategies to apprehend a high-level trafficker in the Dominican Republic that Macey was attempting to enlist as a client. Despite a massive search effort involving 700 law enforcement officials, César Peralta managed to evade capture for over four months.
In exchange for sharing this sensitive information, prosecutors alleged that Recio covertly channeled $73,000 in expenditures to Costanzo, which included buying plane tickets and making a down payment on his condominium in suburban Coral Gables, Florida. During 2019, Macey supposedly spent close to $2,000 on tickets for a Yankees-Red Sox baseball game and an upscale dinner in Manhattan’s West Village for himself, Costanzo, and another high-ranking DEA official stationed in Mexico.
Prosecutors claimed that Recio’s actions were motivated by greed, citing his lavish spending habits and the purchase of a 2021 Porsche Macan. The DEA agents allegedly used fake invoices and a business with a listed address at a UPS store to disguise bribe payments, while also deleting numerous messages and calls made to a burner phone.
The collaboration involved various intermediaries, including Costanzo’s deceased father, who was a respected DEA agent that prosecutors accused of providing false information to the FBI. Another alleged intermediary was DEA task force officer Edwin Pagan, who faced charges last year for allegedly committing perjury during the agents’ trial in 2023. Pagan, a police officer in Coral Gables, has pleaded not guilty to charges of bribery and perjury, with his trial scheduled for August.
The information was reported by Goodman in Panama City, Panama.
