MIAMI – On day six of the corruption trial against former Miami-Dade Commissioner Joe Martinez, the owner of a southwest Miami-Dade supermarket took the stand Wednesday.
Jurors heard from Jorge Negrin, the owner of Extra Supermarket. Prosecutors allege that he, along with shopping plaza owner Sergio Delgado, paid Martinez thousands of dollars in exchange for an unsuccessful attempt to have an ordinance put through to the county commission.
The two were dealing with issues over storage containers on the property, authorities allege, and the pair were incurring hefty fines.
Negrin was testifying for the defense Wednesday, saying any reasonable person would speak to their commissioner regarding such an issue and that nothing nefarious occurred.
“Yes, I suggested that the first thing you have to do is speak to our commissioner, who is the person in charge,” Negrin testified in Spanish, through an interpreter. “That is what is coherent. It’s what’s logical, it’s what’s been established.”
Martinez was arrested in 2022 on charges of unlawful compensation and conspiracy.
The case is expected to be in the jury’s hands by Friday.