YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio- Prosecutors in the Oakhill corruption case are laying the demise of the state's case in the FBI's lap, claiming the state could not move forward with the charges against the seven defendants without having access to tapes the state claims the FBI is in possession of. 

Visiting Judge William Wolff accepted the state's motion to dismiss the charges after the prosecutors said their inability to obtain the tapes and turn them over to the defense meant they could not go forward with their prosecution.

Ohio law requires that prosecuting attorneys provide information to the defense in a process known as discovery.

But if the feds have tapes, the feds are not talking.  Likewise for whether the FBI has been conducting it's own investigation of the Oakhill 7.

The case dismissed today stemmed from allegations that former and current public officials and mall developer Anthony Cafaro, Sr. used their influence to impede the county from moving county operations out of office space leased from Cafaro to the county's Oakhill building.

In addition to Cafaro, those charged in the case were; Mahoning County Commission John McNally, County Auditor Michael Sciortino, former County Treasurer John Reardon, and former county JFS director John Zacariah.

Two other defendants, attorney Martin Yavorcik and Flora Cafaro faced money laundering charges related to allegations Cafaro concealed campaign contributions to Yavorcik.

In a prepared statement released to the media following the dismissal of the charges, Cafaro co-president Anthony Cafaro, Jr. said "we are gratified the special prosecutor decided to bring to an end a prosecution that we always believed was without merit."  Cafaro, Jr. is Anthony Cafaro, Sr.'s son and took over the mall development business after his father retired.

The dismissal of the charges came on what was supposed to be the first day of a week's worth of arguments over motions in the case.  

Attorneys for Cafaro were trying to get the case dismissed by claiming prosecutorial misconduct on the part of County Prosecutor Paul Gaines lay at the heart of the indictment and charges against their client.

Monday, Special Prosecutor Paul Nick said "we again deny allegations of prosecutorial misconduct.  The only reason this case was dismissed was because we could not comply with our duty to disclose information."

Whether the FBI has that information and if so, when it will be used is not known.