OGDEN -- Formal bribery charges have been filed against a Perry police officer as well as the friend, a former officer, the alleged bribe was meant to benefit.
Daniel Kotter, 34, and Matt Jones, 34, were charged last week with one count each of bribery, a second-degree felony.
Jones was arrested in August and charged with driving under the influence by the Utah Highway Patrol, which became the subject of the alleged bribery scheme.
Kotter was arrested in September pursuant to the bribery investigation and suspended by the Perry police force, but charges were not filed until Oct. 12.
Jones, now of Plain City, is a former Ogden police officer. He was fired by the Ogden department in 2007 after disciplinary problems and violations.
Jones was placed on leave July 27, 2006, the same day Mayor Matthew Godfrey spotted Jones' wife driving a van adorned with a sign criticizing the city's ticket-writing policy.
Jones was also among officers sued for wrongful death in a 2005 high-speed chase that preceded a fatal car wreck in Ogden. The case went to trial in 2009, and the city and Jones were acquitted.
The bribery efforts began Sept. 7, according to court documents, when Kotter contacted a UHP trooper and talked to him about Jones' DUI arrest.
Kotter sent the trooper a text message asking to meet and talk about the case.
When they met, Kotter offered the trooper $1,000 not to appear at a hearing for Jones, according to the charges.
The trooper then told Kotter that Jones' blood-alcohol level was 0.15, or nearly twice the legal limit. Jones then offered the trooper $2,500, calling it a "Christmas bonus," according to a search warrant affidavit.
After a number of text messages and phone calls, the two met again Sept. 13 on 21st Street in Ogden. Kotter gave the trooper $2,000 in cash in exchange for a promise not to show up to the hearing, according to the document.
If a police officer fails to show up at an individual's driver's license hearing, no action can be taken against the driver, according to state law.
Kotter was arrested after the Sept. 13 meeting.
Weber County Attorney Dee Smith would only say Jones was a knowing participant in the alleged bribery scheme.
Both are scheduled for a status conference Nov. 10 before Ogden 2nd District Judge Michael Lyon.
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