How long will it be before we hear from a grand jury?

LEE COUNTY, Fla. – It’s Southwest Florida’s biggest mystery and no one knows exactly when answers will come.

Sources have confirmed to Fox 4 that a federal grand jury has convened on fraud allegations against Sheriff Carmine Marceno that first surfaced during his re-election campaign.

LOOK BELOW TO SEE THE PROCESS:

How grand juries work in secret

But what exactly the grand jury will see and how long it might take remains to be seen.

“Maybe there’s nothing to it. It can be a lot. But because of the secrecy of the grand jury, you really won’t know until it’s all over,” said Pamella Seay, a law professor at Florida Gulf Coast University.

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The FBI will neither confirm nor deny whether Marceno is under investigation.

The sheriff says the allegations against him are unfounded and politically motivated.

Marceno’s personal attorney told Fox 4 last week that the sheriff had not received a federal subpoena.

He did not respond to requests for comment on Wednesday.

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The grand jurors meet in secret:

Federal grand juries consist of 23 people who meet in secret and present evidence from U.S. attorneys.

Unlike in a criminal case, only a majority of the grand jury members are required for an indictment.

“The fact is that the defendant will not be given an opportunity to present his case to the grand jury. So the grand jury is only hearing one side of this matter,” Seay said. “Until you have more details, it’s all a guessing game.”

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ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM:

On Tuesday, Lee County Commissioner Cecil Pendergrass called the ongoing federal investigation “the elephant in the room.”

He urged patience as the legal process unfolds.

“I know everyone wants to answer with the big elephant in the room. The grand juries meet for two weeks. “We won’t know anything for a few weeks,” Pendergrass said.