Aguas Buenas Mayor Admits to $32K Bribery Scheme

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – Javier García-Pérez, the former mayor of Aguas Buenas, Puerto Rico, has confessed to a brazen bribery scheme, pleading guilty today to one count of conspiracy. The 46-year-old traded municipal contracts for cold, hard cash, lining his pockets while potentially compromising vital public services.

Court documents detail how García-Pérez, from 2017 through 2021, systematically accepted payments from two unnamed businessmen. In exchange for at least $32,000 – funneled between August 2020 and September 2021 – García-Pérez steered lucrative municipal contracts their way. These contracts covered essential services like waste disposal, asphalt and paving, and debris removal. He also ensured they got paid promptly, all courtesy of the taxpayers of Aguas Buenas.

The feds weren’t asleep at the wheel. The investigation, spearheaded by the FBI’s San Juan Field Office, exposed the pattern of corruption. Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr., U.S. Attorney W. Stephen Muldrow, FBI Assistant Director Luis Quesada, and Special Agent in Charge Joseph González jointly announced the guilty plea, signaling a continued crackdown on public officials abusing their power.

This isn’t an isolated incident. The Department of Justice is making a concerted effort to root out corruption within Puerto Rican municipalities. Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Anderson and Trial Attorney Nicholas W. Cannon are leading the prosecution, building on a string of recent convictions. Cases like United States v. Félix Delgado-Montalvo (21-463), United States v. Oscar Santamaria-Torres (21-464), and numerous others demonstrate a widening net closing on corrupt officials.

Beyond convictions, indictments are also piling up. Former officials Ángel Pérez-Otero (21-474) and Reinaldo Vargas-Rodríguez (22-186) currently face bribery charges related to municipal contracts, with their cases still pending. The DOJ is signaling it’s not just about punishing past offenses, but preventing future ones.

This case, like others in Puerto Rico, underscores a systemic problem of public trust being violated for personal gain. While García-Pérez now faces the consequences of his actions, the residents of Aguas Buenas are left to grapple with the damage done – and the question of how many more officials are operating with similar disregard for the law. The Grimy Times will continue to follow this story and expose the rot within the system.