A woman who is expected to testify in the upcoming federal trial of a Cheektowaga strip club owner was arrested this week on two misdemeanor drug charges.

Phlycia Hunt, 32, was arrested on drug possession charges filed by the FBI this week relating to two incidents in October 2021 and October 2022, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said in court papers made public Friday.

“These are drug possession charges for personal use. Her case has been put off until Wednesday of next week, and my top priority at this point is to help this woman get help and treatment for her drug problem,” said Fonda Kubiak, a federal public defender who represents Hunt.

Defense teams for Joseph Bongiovanni, a retired Drug Enforcement Administration agent and Peter Gerace Jr., owner of Pharaoh’s Gentlemen’s Club in Cheektowaga, each sought separate trials. After a district judge's ruling, the two men are scheduled to be tried together next month.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Jeremiah J. McCarthy arraigned Hunt on Friday and ordered her to be held in jail until the court appearance next week, Kubiak said....