Former Virgin Islands Police Commissioner Ray Martinez and former Office of Management and Budget Director Jenifer O’Neal have lost their bids for acquittals and new trials after a federal judge ruled that prosecutors presented overwhelming evidence supporting their corruption convictions.
In a sweeping 48-page memorandum issued this week, U.S. District Judge Mark Kearney rejected every argument raised by the defense teams for both former officials, concluding that the jury acted properly in convicting them on charges linked to the Mon Ethos corruption scandal.
Martinez and O’Neal were convicted in December 2025 following a high-profile federal trial involving allegations of bribery, honest services wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy connected to government contracts funded through the American Rescue Plan Act. Martinez was also convicted of obstruction of justice.
Judge Kearney opened his memorandum with a sharp rebuke of the defendants’ conduct.
“As always, the rule of law applies to everyone regardless of their temporary power and influence,” the judge wrote while refusing to overturn the unanimous jury verdict.
Federal prosecutors argued during trial that Martinez accepted luxury travel, tuition payments, restaurant equipment, rent assistance and other personal benefits from Mon Ethos owner David Whitaker in exchange for helping the company secure and process lucrative government payments.
According to the ruling, jurors heard evidence that Whitaker paid expenses tied to Martinez’s restaurant venture while Martinez used his authority as police commissioner to approve invoices and support Mon Ethos contracts.
The court also found sufficient evidence that O’Neal knowingly participated in the scheme by helping process an allegedly inflated invoice and later benefiting from a $17,730 payment tied to her planned coffee shop lease at Yacht Haven Grande.
O’Neal had argued that the lease payment was simply a gift from Martinez and that she was unfairly prejudiced by being tried alongside him because the majority of evidence centered on Martinez’s dealings with Whitaker.
Judge Kearney rejected those claims, ruling that jurors could reasonably conclude O’Neal knowingly accepted benefits connected to official government actions. He also noted that her attorneys never formally sought a separate trial before proceedings began.
Martinez’s legal team similarly argued that prosecutors relied too heavily on testimony from Whitaker, a cooperating witness with a criminal history. However, the judge found Whitaker’s testimony was strongly corroborated by documents, recordings, invoices, bank records and communications introduced during trial.
The memorandum detailed several recorded conversations presented to jurors, including discussions about inflated invoices, payments for restaurant equipment and concerns about creating financial “traces” linked to payments.
Judge Kearney ultimately concluded that both former officials “sold the public trust” to finance their private business ambitions while continuing to receive public salaries.
“The facts are a powerful deterrence to arrogance,” the judge wrote in closing.
Martinez is scheduled to be sentenced on June 9, while O’Neal is set for sentencing on June 11. Both are expected to appeal the convictions following sentencing.