BLACK EYE 4U DEPT.
Governor of Puerto Rico
and Twelve Others Indicted for Election Related Crimes
WASHINGTON, March 27 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Puerto Rico Governor Anibal
Acevedo Vila and 12 associates in Puerto Rico, Washington D.C., and the
Philadelphia-area have been charged in a 27-count indictment unsealed today and
returned by a grand jury in San Juan, Puerto Rico on March 24, 2008, Assistant
Attorney General Alice S. Fisher of the Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Rosa
Emilia Rodriguez-Velez of the District of Puerto Rico announced today.
The defendants face charges ranging from conspiracy, false statements, wire
fraud, federal program fraud and tax crimes related to campaign financing for
the governor's 1999-2000 and 2001-2002 campaign for Resident Commissioner of the
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and subsequent 2004 gubernatorial campaign.
According to the indictment, the defendants conspired to defraud the United
States and violate various Federal Election Campaign Act provisions by having
Puerto Rico businessmen make illegal and unreported contributions to pay off
large and unreported debts stemming from Acevedo Vila's 1999-2000 and 2001-2002
campaigns for Resident Commissioner of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Payments
were made principally to the public relations and media company for the
campaigns. The illegal actions continued into 2003, due to the significant debt
accumulated by the campaigns, some of which was also concealed from the FEC and
the public.
Acevedo Vila and legal advisor, defendant Inclan Bird, solicited, accepted, and
then reimbursed illegal conduit contributions from Acevedo Vila's family members
and staff. Conduit contributions are illegal campaign contributions made by one
person in the name of another person. In addition, a group of Philadelphia-area
businessmen solicited, accepted, and then reimbursed illegal conduit
contributions from their own Philadelphia-area family members and staff for
defendant Acevedo Vila. Acevedo Vila, in his official capacity, then personally
assisted the businessmen in their attempts to obtain contracts from Puerto Rico
government agencies for themselves or their clients.
The indictment also alleges a scheme to defraud the Puerto Rico Treasury
Department of $7 million by fraudulently pledging to abide by a voluntary public
funding law in defendant Acevedo Vila's 2004 successful campaign for governor of
Puerto Rico. The funding law required a cap on campaign spending and required
full reporting of all contributions and expenditures. In exchange, the Treasury
Department provided up to $7 million of public funds to the candidate's
campaign.
The indictment alleges that defendant Acevedo Vila and his associates
conducted unreported fund-raising and made unrecorded vendor payments for the
2004 campaign in order to raise and spend far more than the limited amount to
which they had agreed. According to the indictment, one significant aspect of
this fraud was to have Puerto Rico businessmen (described as collaborators) use
large amounts of money from their personal or corporate funds to pay for large
and unreported debts to the campaign's public relations and media company. Large
sums of cash were also used to keep contributions and vendor payments concealed
from the Treasury Department and the public.
As further alleged in the indictment, for many of the collaborator
payments the media company created fake invoices to make the payments appear to
be legitimate business expenses of the contributors' companies. The indictment
charges Jose Gonzalez Freyre, one of these contributors, with falsely claiming
that a $50,000 invoice was real and that bona fide services had been provided to
his company in exchange for the payment, when in fact, the invoice was fake and
the $50,000 payment was part of the unrecorded fundraising and expenditure
scheme.
In related illegal actions alleged in the indictment, Acevedo Vila, aided by
Inclan Bird, accepted numerous forms of personal income from funds related to
his campaigns or official position, which he failed to report as required on his
income tax returns.
"This indictment demonstrates the commitment of the Department of Justice and
the U.S. Attorney's Office in Puerto Rico to ensure the integrity of the
electoral process. Candidates for office and elected officials will be held
accountable for corrupting the electoral process by disregarding campaign
financing laws. Electoral fraud undermines the essence of our representative
form of government, and operates to the detriment of every Puerto Rican," said
U.S. Attorney Rosa Emilia Rodriguez-Velez.
"The Department of Justice will continue to enforce public corruption laws which
are designed to protect citizens' right to honest and fair government
representation," said Assistant Attorney General Alice S. Fisher.
"Our democratic system cannot function when public officials act as though they
are above the law. Public officials must comply with the law and those who do
not comply will be held accountable," said Luis Fraticelli, Special Agent in
Charge of the FBI's San Juan Field Office. "Today's indictment is a reminder
that the tax laws apply equally to everyone. No one is above the law. It is the
responsibility of every taxpayer to file correct and accurate income tax
returns," said Michael E. Yasofsky, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal
Revenue Service (IRS) Miami Field Office.
The defendants and their individual charges are as follows:
(1) Anibal Acevedo Vila, 48, of San
Juan, Puerto Rico, is charged with conspiracy, false
statements, wire fraud, federal program fraud, and tax
crimes. Defendant Acevedo Vila was Puerto Rico's
Resident Commissioner in the U.S. House of
Representatives from 2001 through 2005, and has been the
Governor of Puerto Rico since 2005;
(2) Candido Negron Mella, 41, of Glenn Mills, Penn., is
charged with conspiracy and false statements. Negron
Mella is a Philadelphia businessman and was designated
by defendant Acevedo Vila as his U.S. deputy campaign
finance chairman (Resident Commissioner campaign) in
2002;
(3) Salvatore Avanzato, 69, of Boothwyn, Penn., is
charged with conspiracy. Avanzato is a Philadelphia-area
businessman;
(4) Jorge Velasco Mella, 38, of San Juan, Puerto Rico,
is charged with conspiracy and false statements. Velasco
Mella, a cousin of Negron Mella, received a job in
defendant Acevedo Vila's San Juan Resident Commissioner
office and assisted in the handling of campaign
contributions;
(5) Robert M. Feldman, 60, of Gladwyne, Penn., is
charged with conspiracy. Feldman is a Philadelphia-area
political and business consultant and was designated by
defendant Acevedo Vila as his U.S. campaign finance
chairman (Resident Commissioner campaign) in 2002;
(6) Marvin I. Block, 74, of Philadelphia is charged with
conspiracy. Block is a Philadelphia-area businessman and
lawyer;
(7) Ramon Velasco Escardille, 49, of San Juan, Puerto
Rico, is charged with conspiracy, false statements and
wire fraud. Velasco Escardille was defendant Acevedo
Vila's Resident Commissioner campaign treasurer;
(8) Edwin Colon Rodriguez, 35, of Arecibo, Puerto Rico,
is charged with conspiracy and false statements. He is
also charged with embezzlement in a separate indictment
unsealed today. Colon Rodriguez was defendant Acevedo
Vila's Resident Commissioner campaign assistant
treasurer;
(9) Eneidy Coreano Salgado, 40, of Rockville, Md., is
charged with conspiracy. Coreano Salgado was defendant
Acevedo Vila's administrative director in his
Washington, D.C. Resident Commissioner office;
(10) Luisa Inclan Bird, 47, of Guaynabo, Puerto Rico, is
charged with conspiracy, wire fraud and federal program
fraud. Inclan Bird was a legal advisor for defendant
Acevedo Vila's San Juan office and volunteered in his
2004 gubernatorial campaign's finance department.
Currently, she is a senior advisor for Governor Acevedo
Vila;
(11) Miguel Nazario Franco, 60, of San Juan, Puerto
Rico, is charged with wire fraud and federal program
fraud. Nazario Franco volunteered in defendant Acevedo
Vila's 2004 gubernatorial campaign finance department,
and is currently a businessman in Puerto Rico.
(12) Ricardo Colon Padilla, 39, of Rio Piedras, Puerto
Rico, is charged
with wire fraud, federal program fraud and false
statements. Colon Padilla was the finance director for
defendant Acevedo Vila's political party during his 2004
gubernatorial campaign.
(13) Jose Gonzalez Freyre, 56, of Guaynabo, Puerto Rico,
is charged with wire fraud and false statements.
Gonzalez Freyre is the owner of Pan American Grain, a
Puerto Rico agricultural company, which contributed at
least $50,000 to defendant Acevedo Vila's 2004
gubernatorial campaign.
Each count carries the following maximum prison terms and fines, along with
terms of supervised release:
Count one
(conspiracy): five years in prison and a $250,000 fine;
Counts two
through nine (false statements to the FEC and federal
agents): five years in prison and a $250,000 fine;
Counts 10 through
21 (wire fraud): 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine;
Count 22 (program
fraud - obtaining money by fraud): 10 years in prison
and a $250,000 fine;
Counts 23 and 24
(false statements to the FBI and IRS: five years in
prison and a $250,000 fine;
Count 25 (conspiracy to defraud the IRS): five years in
prison and a $250,000 fine;
Counts 26 and 27
(filing false tax return): three years in prison and a
$100,000 fine;
This case is being prosecuted by First Assistant U.S. Attorney Maria A.Dominguez
of the District of Puerto Rico and Trial Attorney Daniel A. Schwager of the
Criminal Division's Public Integrity Section. The Public Integrity Section is
headed by Chief William M. Welch, II. The case is being investigated by
the FBI and IRS, with assistance and cooperation from the Office of the
Comptroller of Puerto Rico.
The investigation into related corruption and other crimes is ongoing in the
District of Puerto Rico. An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal
conduct, not evidence. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until
convicted through due process of law.
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