Nye County Republican Seeks Dismissal, Alleges Vindictive Prosecution

Leo Blundo, once the chair of the Nye County Republican Party and a former county commissioner, has taken his fight to the courtroom, asking a federal judge to toss the indictment that accuses him of cheating the federal government out of more than $500,000 in pandemic‑relief money.

The indictment, filed in March, alleges that Blundo submitted false paperwork to the Paycheck Protection Program and the Restaurant Revitalization Fund for his Pahrump eatery, Carmela’s Bistro. Prosecutors say he inflated payroll numbers, overstated revenue and even padded his employee headcount to secure the loans.

But Blundo’s public defenders are painting a very different picture. In a filing, they argue the case is less about financial wrongdoing and more about a “personal and political history” between Blundo and Sigal Chattah, the Nevada U.S. attorney who took office a few months before the charges were laid.

According to the defense, after years of investigators and prosecutors declining to bring any case, Chattah’s office sent Blundo a so‑called “target letter” – a warning that he was now in the crosshairs. The filing cites Bloomberg Law reporting that Chattah herself oversaw the prosecution, even after a Justice Department order suggested she should recuse herself because of a conflict of interest.

The timing, they say, is suspect. The indictment arrived just before Nevada’s candidate‑filing deadline, effectively preventing Blundo from running for office in the current cycle. “Had it not been for Ms. Chattah’s personal and political history with Mr. Blundo, this case would not have been brought,” the defense wrote.

Court documents also reveal a more colorful side to the alleged animosity. Chattah reportedly warned Blundo’s then‑wife that he “better watch out” because “he does not know who he is … with,” and used profanity to describe him, urging the wife to leave him.

Blundo, who was elected to the county commission in 2018 but lost his bid for re‑election, maintains his innocence. He and his legal team contend that the federal government is using the pandemic‑era relief programs as a political weapon, and they are asking the judge to dismiss the charges on those grounds.

Whether the judge will see merit in the claim of vindictive prosecution remains to be seen, but the case underscores how legal battles can become tangled with personal grievances and partisan rivalry in Nevada’s small‑town politics.