A payoff was set up when NFL players faced charges, cops say

It’s the legal football that can’t find a South Florida prosecutor to receive: Did someone arrange a bribe to weaken the robbery case against two NFL players?

Broward prosecutors won’t touch allegations that four people were paid to change their story about an armed robbery committed, allegedly, by the two rising NFL players: The payoff happened in Miami-Dade County, out of their reach.

Miami-Dade prosecutors won’t touch the allegations: The payoff, if it happened as a police search warrant described it, was directly related to a crime committed in Broward County.

Unless one side blinks or another agency steps in, there’s no indication anyone will face charges if investigators were to find evidence of bribery or witness tampering. The stalemate is an odd twist in a case full of them.

New York Giants cornerback DeAndre Baker is facing four counts of armed robbery over accusations that he stole $750 in cash and watches from four men at a house party in Miramar on May 13.

The victims had originally accused Baker of committing the robbery along with his friend, Seattle Seahawks player Quinton Dunbar.

But according to a search warrant released last month, victims later presented Miramar police with a stunning development: All four said they accepted a cash payout at the Miami office of Dunbar’s lawyer in exchange for changing their story.

All four signed sworn statements saying Dunbar did not participate in the robbery. When police questioned them about it, they reported the payoff, the warrant states.

The lawyer, attorney

Michael Grieco, a Democratic member of the Florida House of Representatives, stepped out of his office before the money changed hands, according to the search warrant. Grieco did not return a call to his office seeking comment.

The Broward State Attorney’s Office announced earlier this month that it was pursuing a case against Baker but not Dunbar. The only explanation offered for declining charges against Dunbar was “insufficient evidence.” No mention was made of the victims’ flipflopping on Dunbar’s involvement.

The prosecutors’ office will not comment on the witness tampering or bribery allegations.

“The Broward State Attorney’s Office has a pending criminal case against DeAndre Baker and our prosecutors believe it would be inappropriate to comment because of that pending case,” spokeswoman Paula McMahon said in an email.

The Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office says regardless of where the potential crime was committed, it’s inseparable from Broward’s case.

“Upon reviewing the matter, and upon having discussions with the Broward State Attorney’s Office, it was determined that Miami-Dade County was not the appropriate venue for such an investigation,” said office spokesman Ed Griffith.

But Baker’s lawyer said Thursday he will certainly use the inconsistent statements to show that the victims’ testimony can’t be trusted.

“Prosecutors concentrated on the wrong information,” said the lawyer, Bradford Cohen.