Alvarado, another key witness and former Wackenhut supervisor, lost credibility when he was charged in 2008 of sexually assaulting a woman during a traffic stop in Sandy Springs, Ga., after becoming a police officer for that North Georgia city.

Before his arrest in Alabama and subsequent conviction, Alvarado had been on the lam for a year.

In September 2011, prosecutors dropped charges against Pedrayes and Esquivel.

“Rene Pedrayes is an honorable man who worked hard for a good company. Alvarado, on the other hand, wouldn’t know the truth if it ran up and kissed him,” the man’s attorney, David O. Markus said at the time.

The case against Pendleton continued, but eventually was delivered a final blow when Holmes backtracked on an earlier sworn statement in a deposition. Holmes had initially implicated Pendleton, but once he recanted, it left reasonable doubt as to whether Pendleton knew of the “ghost posting,” prosecutors said.

Now, prosecutors are reviewing whether to revoke Holmes’ probation, or charge him with perjury, said Ed Griffith, a spokesman for the State Attorney’s office. Holmes’ attorney could not be reached for comment.

In a newly released “close-out” memo, prosecutor Isis Perez wrote that Holmes’ backtracking, along with Aviles death and Alvarado’s conviction, made it “difficult or nearly impossible for the state to prove that Pendleton was aware that the billing submitted to Miami-Dade County was fraudulent.”

Pendleton’s attorney did not return repeated calls from The Miami Herald.

With the racketeering charge dropped, a judge granted Pendleton a “withhold of adjudication” on a third-degree grand-theft charge, meaning the felony will not show on his record.

As for secretary Erika Reyan, the final defendant, Miami-Dade Circuit Judge William Thomas tossed out her case in September because the statute of limitations had run out.

Prosecutors are appealing that decision.