A former mayor of a Puerto Rico city whose bribery was caught on camera has been sentenced to five years in jail.
Angel Perez Otero – the erstwhile mayor of the city of Guaynabo from 2017 to 2021 – had previously been found guilty of conspiracy and bribery by a 12-member jury back in March of 2023. He was accused of awarding contract and expediting invoice payments while getting kickbacks of thousands of dollars. Otero's prison sentence of five years and three months, alongside a punishment of 160 hours of community service, was handed down on Feb. 12.
The former mayor's sentencing was part of an ongoing federal crackdown on government corruption in the U.S. territory. Otero is not alone, however – as several former mayors have been sentenced in federal bribery cases in recent years. These include the former mayors of the towns of Rincon, Guayama, Humacao, Aguas Buenas and Trujillo Alto. (Related: Explosive revelation: Fani Willis linked to massive election fraud and money laundering RICO enterprise.)
The Department of Justice (DOJ) wrote about the scheme in a March 2023 statement. Citing court documents and evidence, the DOJ recounted that the 52-year-old Otero "was involved in a bribery conspiracy in which, from approximately late 2019 through May 2021, he accepted thousands of dollars in cash bribes on a regular basis from the owner of a construction company."
"In exchange for these payments, Otero agreed to obtain and retain contracts for the company and ensured that its invoices were promptly paid," the DOJ said.
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Otero was arrested by agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in December 2021. His arrest followed the collaboration between Colombian businessman Oscar Santamaria and former Catano Mayor Felix Delgado Montalvo to disclose the bribery scheme, according to the San Juan Daily Star.
Otero's bribery caught on camera for the world to see
The Daily Star added that Otero faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for the extortion charge and 10 years for the bribery charge. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Attorneys for the former mayor have expressed plans to appeal the sentence.
According to court filings, Otero received about $5,000 a month from the end of 2018 to August 2021 from Santamaria in exchange for contracts for the company Island Builders. To back up this claim, federal prosecutors also revealed images in which the Colombian businessman gave the bribe money to Otero.
The FBI San Juan Field Office investigated the case – with DOJ Criminal Division Assistant Attorney General Kenneth Polite Jr., U.S. Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico W. Stephen Muldrow and FBI Special Agent in Charge Joseph Gonzalez of the bureau's San Juan Field Office making the announcement. U.S. District Judge Aida Delgado Colon heard Otero's case.
Trial Attorney Nicholas Cannon of the DOJ Criminal Division's Public Integrity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico Myriam Fernandez-González are prosecuting the case. Trial Attorney Ryan R. Crosswell of the Criminal Division's Public Integrity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico Scott H. Anderson assisted in the investigation.
This case is part of the Justice Department's ongoing efforts to combat public corruption by municipal officials in Puerto Rico. In addition to the above matter, the Public Integrity Section under the DOJ's Criminal Division and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Puerto Rico have recently obtained convictions against other former public officials and contractors in the District for soliciting and accepting bribes related to municipal contracts.
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