Lobbyist for man pardoned by Trump in plea talks on extortion charges

By Luc Cohen and Marisa Taylor

NEW YORK, April 7 (Reuters) - A lobbyist who helped a nursing home owner convicted of tax fraud secure a pardon from President Donald Trump is in talks with prosecutors over a potential plea agreement to resolve extortion charges, court records showed.

Attorney Joshua Nass, founder of lobbying firm Merkava Strategies, was arrested on March 13 on charges of hiring someone to intimidate a former client and his son into paying him $500,000. Court papers do not identify the former client, but two people familiar with the matter said it was Joseph Schwartz, the nursing home owner who received the pardon last year.

In a court filing on Monday night, Nass' lawyers asked Brooklyn-based U.S. Magistrate Judge James Cho to push the deadline for prosecutors to secure an indictment to April 27 from April 13 as talks continue.

"This additional time is necessary to afford the parties time to confer regarding a potential resolution of the case," Nass' defense lawyers wrote, adding that prosecutors consented to the request.

Nass has not entered a plea. His lawyers did not immediately respond to requests for comment. A spokesperson for the Brooklyn U.S. Attorney's office declined to comment.

In December 2025, the son of Nass' former client agreed to pay Nass $100,000 toward a $600,000 contract for lobbying services, according to prosecutors. In January, Nass hired someone previously convicted of racketeering to threaten and assault the client and his son, according to an FBI complaint filed in court.

The complaint did not describe the nature of the lobbying services.

Congressional lobbying records show that Nass agreed to represent Schwartz in connection with "petitioning for a pardon/clemency" starting on November 13, 2025. Nass earned $100,000 in connection with his work for Schwartz in the fourth quarter of 2025, records show.

Schwartz, 66, pleaded guilty in New Jersey federal court in November 2024 to a $38 million tax fraud scheme. Trump pardoned him on November 14, less than three months after he began serving a three-year sentence in an Otisville, New York federal prison.

Schwartz's lawyer Kevin Marino declined to comment.

U.S. presidents have unchecked power to grant clemency for federal crimes. Historically, presidents have granted pardons or sentence commutations toward the end of their terms after extensive review processes. Trump, during his second term in the White House, has made far earlier and more frequent use of the clemency power than his predecessors.