FBI Arrests Nearly Every Single Elected Official In A Texas Town
BY ESTHER YU-HSI LEE FEB 7, 2016
Only two of the elected officials in a remote Texas town were left unscathed after the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) arrested six members under a federal indictment that accuses them of taking bribes and helping an illegal gambling operator in exchange for favors, the Associated Press reported. Those arrested in Crystal City, Texas include the mayor, the city attorney who is also the city manager, two current councilmen, and a former councilman.
“The indictment alleges that these public officials and this businessman solicited and accepted bribes in exchange for official action, such as voting to award city contracts to, waive certain tax payments by, and conduct certain inspections to give unfair advantage to those paying bribes,” Richard Durbin, the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Texas, said in a press release. One of the two remaining top officials was previously arrested on federal charges of smuggling immigrants across the southern U.S. border.
According to the Department of Justice indictment, Crystal City’s officials were accused of using “their official positions to enrich themselves by soliciting and accepting bribes from persons seeking to do business” since February 2015. The city manager, William James Jonas, III, was accused of managing the bribery scheme, in which a contractor provided bribes worth more than $12,000 to city officials in exchange for a city contract and unfair advantages. Ngoc Tri Nguyen, a city councilmember, was accused of providing payment to Mayor Ricardo Lopez, “including $6,000, in exchange for various official acts from Lopez and Jonas.” Nguyen was allegedly running illegal gambling rooms, as well.
Joel Barajas, the remaining councilman without an arrest warrant, said that the city has about $2 million in unpaid bills and was facing bankruptcy.
“For the time being, they remain the elected officials and the representatives of that city,” Durbinsaid.
“Crystal City is a good town,” Maria Sanchez Rivera, a lifelong resident told the Associated Press. “If you do wrong, you have to face your consequences. We’ve got laws for everything and we’ve got to abide by what the law says.”
FBI Arrests Every Corrupt Politician In Texas City
When Joel Barajas showed up to work at the office last Friday, he was alone. That’s because he was the only Crystal City council member who hadn’t been arrested, facing felony charges.
Officials in the Texas city had all been arrested the day before, under a federal indictment accusing them of taking tens of thousands of dollars in bribes for special favors.
The indictment netted the city’s mayor, mayor pro tempore, as well as a council member, and the city manager. Additionally, a former city council member was arrested, along with a businessman accused of bribing the officials, Ngoc Tri Nguyen.
Another council member, Marco Rodriguez, was just arrested last month on charges of human smuggling.
Crystal City has about 7,500 people, and it is located 130 miles southwest of San Antonio.
Barajashas been on the council for nine months, according to local KSAT.
“I knew some things were not being correctly taken care of,” he explained.
The indictment alleges that officials “used their official positions to enrich themselves by soliciting and accepting payments and other things of value” from Nguyen as well as other businessmen.
These businessmen were award taxpayer-funded contracts in exchange for bribes, as well as extorting payments from contractors.
Nguyen’s gaming business monopolized things, as politicians shut down would-be competitors.
FBI say :
It also alleges that Lopez and the other officials extended city manager and city attorney William Jonas’s lucrative taxpayer-funded contract, in exchange for bribes.
The San Antonio Express-News says that that Jonas, a “one-time Republican lobbyist down on his luck,” was paid nearly $180,000 a year. This was after being hired without ever having worked as a city attorney or even having applied for the job.
Residents told local KENS that they had already tried recalling the city leaders. Jonas, however, used his power as city attorney to block all attempts.
Crystal City is now $2 million in debt and facing bankruptcy, as a result of the bribes and secret deals.
Richard Durbin Jr., the U.S. attorney for San Antonio, said in an interview with the Associated Press that he hoped this indictment will help restore some public confidence in the local government.
“What we can do is that first step,” Durbin said. “In the end, it falls back on the citizens to make the next decision on who they put in those offices, because that’s how the system works.”
Each official faces up to 10 years in federal prison as well as $250,000 in fines, if convicted. Is this enough?
source : http://www.dailymedia.info
No comments:
Post a Comment