witness tampering

noun

law

: the act of physically harming or using threats, intimidation, harassment, or corrupt persuasion against a witness with the goal of influencing the witness's testimony or preventing the witness from providing evidence in an official proceeding

…12 jurors are considering whether to put him in prison for the rest of his life on charges that include racketeering, extortion, bribery, mail fraud and witness tampering.

—Karen Tumulty

Examples of witness tampering in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Flynn and Randall were sentenced to life in prison with a possibility of parole, while Smart was sentenced to life with no chance of parole for conspiracy to commit murder, being an accomplice to first-degree murder and witness tampering. —Emily Krauser, People.com, 1 May 2025

However, with allegations of intimidation and even witness tampering being made over the months against Combs, the feds are trying to alleviate the fears the other women have expressed about showing up in court. —Dominic Patten, Deadline, 4 Apr. 2025

The allegation of witness tampering against Abdinasir Abshir, 32, of Lakeville, surfaced last month in the trial of the alleged ringleader, Aimee Bock, the founder of the now-defunct nonprofit Feeding Our Future, and Salim Said, a former Minneapolis restaurant owner. —Steve Karnowski, Twin Cities, 7 Mar. 2025

And a close aide was charged with witness tampering and destroying evidence in the investigation into the mayor. —Jan Ransom, New York Times, 6 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1902, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for witness tampering

• hampering
• pampering
• scampering