The FBI is actively investigating public corruption in Puerto Rico

Casos de corrupción a todos los niveles

 

www.vocero.com

 

Cases, nuevo director del Negociado Federal de Investigaciones en la Isla, se expresó a favor de la activación de la Guardia Nacional para ayudar a atajar la incidencia de crímenes.

FBI probing corruption cases in PR

via Caribbean Business on 2/11/13

FBI probing corruption cases in PR The FBI is actively investigating public corruption in Puerto Rico and will cont ...    FBI probing corruption cases in PR By CB Online Staff cbnews@caribbeanbusinesspr.com; cbprdigital@gmail.com The FBI is actively investigating public corruption in Puerto Rico and will continue to make such cases a priority, the federal agency’s new chief in the U.S. Caribbean territories said Monday. “I can’t go into specific details about the investigations or who is under investigation,” Special Agent in Charge Carlos Cases said. “What I can say is that we are investigating public corruption at all levels.” Cases’ comments came during a press conference at FBI headquarters in San Juan where he outlined his agenda as head of the agency in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. “I have established public corruption and violent crimes as the investigative priorities of our office,” he said. Cases, a 21-year FBI veteran, was named last week to oversee FBI operations in both U.S. territories, becoming the third Puerto Rican to hold the post after Héctor Pesquera (the current Puerto Rico police chief) and Luis Fraticelli. “I am concerned by all types of corruption,” he said. “As public officials, the people put their trust in us. If public servants don’t do things the right way, how can we expect the public to do so?” Cases, born and raised in Puerto Rico, previously was director for Latin America and the southwest border for the FBI’s criminal investigations division in Washington, D.C. He also has worked at the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City and at the federal agency’s office in San Juan, where he was honored for his participation in one of the bureau’s largest public corruption cases that targeted local law enforcement officials. Cases began his career as a special agent with the FBI in May 1992. He first reported to the El Paso Division, where he investigated violent crime, organized crime, and drug matters. In 1994, he transferred to the San Juan Division and continued to work organized crime and drug cases. In 2001, Cases was promoted to supervisory special agent in the drug section of the Criminal Investigative Division and detailed to DEA Headquarters. He then transferred to the San Juan Division in 2002 as the supervisory special agent of a Criminal Enterprise squad. While there, he served as a coordinator for the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force, Crisis Negotiation, and SWAT. He was then promoted to program manager in 2005 and assigned to the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City to coordinate drug and gang investigations. In 2007, Cases returned to the San Juan Division as the supervisory special agent of the Joint Terrorism Task Force and, in 2009, was promoted to assistant special agent in charge of the Criminal Branch. While there, he received the Director’s Award for Outstanding Criminal Investigation and the Attorney General’s Award for Excellence in Law Enforcement for his role in Operation Guard Shack, one of the largest public corruption cases in FBI history. Puerto Rico Law Enforcement and Police News *FBI* Investigating Public Corruption in *Puerto Rico* - Latin American *... * via puerto rico fbi - Google Blog Search by unknown on 2/11/13 SAN JUAN – The FBI's new Special Agent in Charge for Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands said Monday that his office is investigating cases of public corruption on this Caribbean island. Carlos Cases, whose appointment was announced ... El *FBI* investiga casos de corrupción pública en *Puerto Rico* | Yasta via puerto rico fbi - Google Blog Search by Agencia EFE on 2/11/13 San Juan – El nuevo jefe de la Oficina Federal de Investigaciones (FBI, por sus siglas en inglés) para Puerto Rico y las Islas Vírgenes, Carlos Cases, informó hoy que la agencia estadounidense investiga casos de corrupción ... *FBI* investiga casos de corrupción pública - El Nuevo Día via puerto rico fbi - Google Blog Search by unknown on 2/11/13 El nuevo jefe en Puerto Rico del Negociado Federal de Investigaciones (FBI, por sus siglas en inglés), Carlos Cases, confirmó hoy que la agencia conduce varias investigaciones de corrupción pública “a todos los niveles”. FBI Investigating Public Corruption in Puerto Rico - Latin American Herald Tribune via puerto rico law enforcement - Google News on 2/11/13 Latin American Herald Tribune FBI Investigating Public Corruption in Puerto Rico Latin American Herald Tribune Cases was decorated for his role in 2010 in Operation Guard Shack, which led to the arrest of 89 Puerto Rico police officers and prison guards. A veteran of 21 years with the FBI, Cases is the third native Puerto Rican to head the San Juan office. EFE ... and more »

JOBOS, Isabella, Puerto Rico (Monday, February 11, 2013) – The Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) 4-Star 2013 Rip Curl Pro Puerto Rico presented by seepuertorico.com

Rip Curl Pro Puerto Rico: Day 3 Highlights - Transworld Surf

via puerto rico - Google News on 2/11/13

Yahoo! Eurosport UK

Rip Curl Pro Puerto Rico: Day 3 Highlights Transworld Surf JOBOS, Isabella, Puerto Rico (Monday, February 11, 2013) – The Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) 4-Star 2013 Rip Curl Pro Puerto Rico presented by seepuertorico.com saw the event's top seeds take to the water in stormy eight foot (2 meter) ... RIP CURL PRO PUERTO RICO: HALFTIME REPORTSurfline.com Surf News Rob Kelly and Dean Randazzo advance in Puerto Rico surfing contestPress of Atlantic City all 9 news articles »

A Puerto Rican LGBT advocate continues to urge local authorities to investigate the murder of a gay hairstylist as a possible hate crime

Last Update: 2.12.13

 

Hispanic News Network U.S.A.: Velez Facing Hate Crime Charges ...

from crime in puerto rico 2011 - Google Blog Search by H. Nelson Goodson

Vélez will become the first homicide suspect to be charged with a hate crime in Puerto Rico for killing Morales, a well known gay hairstylist in Puerto Rico. By H. Nelson Goodson. February 11, 2013. Moca, Puerto Rico ...

 

 

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*Puerto Rico* police urged to investigate *gay man's* death as possible *... *

via gay men puerto rico - Google Blog Search by Pedro Julio Serrano on 2/7/13

Puerto Rico police urged to investigate gay man's death as possible hate crime… ... A Puerto Rican LGBT advocate continues to urge local authorities to investigate the murder of a gay hairstylist as a possible hate crime.

Puerto Rico police urged to investigate gay man’s death as possible hate crime…

07/02/2013 at 11:12 AMDeja un comentario

By Michael Lavers | Washington Blade
A Puerto Rican LGBT advocate continues to urge local authorities to investigate the murder of a gay hairstylist as a possible hate crime.
El Nuevo Día reported on Thursday that Richard Soto Vélez, 20, confessed to killing Milton Medina Morales on Feb. 3 after he said they went fishing in three local rivers near Mayagüez on the island’s west coast. Soto reportedly told investigators he became enraged after the two men were unable to catch anything and attacked Medina with a machete.
The newspaper said authorities found Medina’s partially burned body with its fingers cut outside Mayagüez on Monday.
“We ask the authorities to investigate the hate angle in this case,” Pedro Julio Serrano of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force told the Washington Blade. “We are not satisfied with the alleged confession that the killer provided. You don’t kill someone with such viciousness because of a disagreement or because you couldn’t fish anything.”
Medina’s death comes less than two months after the Puerto Rico Police Department agreed to strengthen its response to hate crimes as part of a broad settlement with the Justice Department.
Gay teenager Jorge Steven López Mercado’s brutal 2009 murder highlighted the rampant anti-LGBT violence in the American commonwealth.
Serrano and other LGBT rights advocates routinely criticized local officials for not seeking prosecutions under the island’s hate crimes law that includes both sexual orientation and gender identity. New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn is among those who blasted former Gov. Luís Fortuño for what they contend was his administration’s unwillingness to speak out against rampant anti-LGBT violence on the island.
Capt. Janice Rodríguez of the Puerto Rico Police Department’s Criminal Investigations Unit (CIC) in Mayagüez told Primera Hora that Soto’s version of the events “are not clear.” She added authorities continue to investigate whether Medina’s sexual orientation prompted the suspect to allegedly kill him.
“There’s a hate that is probably deeply motivated and the authorities need to get to the bottom of it,” Serrano said. “The local law forces authorities to investigate the possible bias in this type of crime and we ask them to enforce it.”
Soto faces first degree, robbery and weapons charges in connection with Medina’s death.

NYT: 36 Hours in San Juan, Puerto Rico

36 Hours in San Juan, Puerto Rico

 

 

Laura Magruder for The New York Times

By CHARLES ISHERWOOD

Published: February 7, 2013

The Latino Partnership for Conservative Principles held a press conference last week to educate people about why statehood is a conservative issue

Conservatives Press for Puerto Rican Statehood

Posted on February 8, 2013 by hadeninteractive

Some people have claimed that Puerto Rico’s desire for statehood will be ignored by Republicans in Congress because they believe that statehood is a liberal cause or that new Puerto Rican voters will be too liberal for Republicans. Current thinking in the Latino conservative network, however, is to the contrary.
The Latino Partnership for Conservative Principles held a press conference last week to educate people about why statehood is a conservative issue. The roster of Latino and conservative leaders was impressive:

• Former Governor Luis Fortuno (R-PR)
• Grover Norquist, President, Americans for Tax Reform
• Dr. Richard Land, President, Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, Southern Baptist Convention
• Niger Innis, National Spokesman, Congress of Racial Equality
• Dr. Hernan Padilla, Former Mayor of San Juan, PR
• Alfonso Aguilar, Executive Director, Latino Partnership for Conservative Principles

A primary reason why conservatives support statehood is that it is more in keeping with the U.S. Constitution than the current colonial relationship. Ignoring Puerto Rico’s expressed unwillingness to continue as a territory of the United States places the U.S. in the position of governing without the consent of the governed. “Not only is it not democratic,” said Aguilar,”it goes against the very soul and ideas of the Founding Fathers. We were created as a republic, not an empire.”
Another point that appeals to conservatives is the need for equality. “Being for Puerto Rican statehood is like being against Plessy v. Ferguson,” the Baptist Press quoted Dr. Land as saying in remarks after the conference. “The same court that gave us Jim Crow gave us a new judicially created territorial status for Puerto Rico that was different… only because they were Hispanic.”
“It’s well past time for us to correct the racist, segregationist creation of a long-forgotten Supreme Court,” Land continued, “and to live up to the promises of our founding documents and redeem those promises for the people of Puerto Rico.”
Dr. Padilla expressed the same sentiments, saying, “The unprecedented category of “unincorporated territory” was created by a segregationist Court to prevent a territory inhabited by people of Hispanic origin from becoming a part of the United States.” He went on to say that “in 1922 a U.S. Supreme Court that upheld racial segregation determined that Puerto Rico was still an unincorporated territory because its Justices could not conceive of a faraway island inhabited by Hispanics, rather than Anglo-Saxons, to be a part of this Nation.”
Calling on conservatives to support the Constitution while rejecting the racist errors of a century ago, the LPCPP emphasized the need to respect the vote taken in Puerto Rico in November of 2012 in which 54% of voters rejected the current territorial status of the island and 61% chose statehood as their preferred relationship with the United States. Ignoring this vote, the speakers said, is not acceptable behavior for a nation based on the principles of democracy.