BREVARD COUNTY, Fla – Former Palm Bay deputy manager David Isnardi will stay behind bars after he turned himself in to authorities for an arrest warrant on racketeering and conspiracy charges.
Isnardi did not appear in court at the Brevard County jail Saturday morning. His attorney, Bryan Lober, waived his client's first appearance right.
The former Palm Bay deputy manager is wrapped up in a federal investigation that started four years ago.
Agents said Isnardi and his co-defendant, Jose Aguiar, were part of a corrupt scheme to influence city officials.
Both men were arrested on Friday.
Attorneys for Isnardi and Aguiar were in court fighting to get them released, but a judge ordered both suspects held without bond.
Lober filed a not guilty plea on behalf of Isnardi. He said his client's alleged involvement doesn't add up to the charges.
"I wouldn't be too terribly surprised to see when the state ends up looking at this and determining what they want to file in an information if the charges are different and perhaps less severe than what we're seeing," Lober said.
According to their arrest warrants, Isnardi and Aguiar, who was a former Palm Bay city council candidate, tried to extort current city councilman Jeff Bailey and former councilman Tres Holton.
A confidential information told agents the pair planned to install secret cameras at home and catch the city officials in compromising situations to sway their votes.
Both Isnardi and Aguiar are charged with racketeering, conspiracy to commit extortion, and conspiracy to possess controlled substances.
Aguiar did appear in court Saturday morning for his initial appearance. He was wearing a neck brace. His attorney Daniel Martinez said he recently underwent surgery.
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Martinez adds his client is innocent until proven guilty.
"Quite frankly at this point all we have is a warrant. That's a piece of paper. We haven't heard the recordings yet. We don't know what's in there," Martinez said.
Martinez said he plans to file a not guilty plea for his client.
Both attorneys said they are going to file motions to schedule a bond modification hearing so their clients can be released from jail.
Stay with News 6 on-air and online for updates on this developing story.