By EFE
03 Apr 2024, 07:48 AM EDT
San Juan – Businessman Oscar Santamaría was sentenced this Tuesday to serve two and a half years (30 months) in prison, after pleading guilty to having paid bribes to several mayors of Puerto Rico in exchange for million-dollar contracts for his companies.
Federal Judge Raúl Arias Marxauch determined that Santamaría must also serve three years of supervised release, pay a fine of $100,000 and restitute $6 million.
Arias Marxauch stated at the hearing that the businessman’s way of acting was to pay bribes to obtain contracts with several mayors, although he only pleaded guilty for the corruption case of the municipality of Cataño.
Prior to hearing his sentence, Santamaría expressed his “greatest regret” and said he assumed “responsibility for the consequences” of his actions.
Upon leaving the court, he did not make any statements, but his lawyer María Domínguez indicated that she expected a “more favorable” sentence due to her client’s cooperation with federal authorities.
This cooperation helped the conviction of several mayors, including those of Guaynabo, Cataño, Aguas Buenas, Trujillo Alto and Humacao, the lawyer added.
All of these mayors have been accused and/or convicted of accepting bribes from businessmen like Santamaría in exchange for awarding them million-dollar construction contracts in their municipalities.
The owner of the companies Waste Collection, Island Builders and VIP Healthcare Solutions pleaded guilty in November 2021 to a single count of conspiracy, bribery with federal funds and kickbacks in the municipality of Cataño.
On those dates, he admitted that he bribed the former mayor of Cataño Félix “El Cano” Delgado with payments of $2,000 dollars a week to achieve contracts with the municipality, which amounted to 49 million dollars.
“El Cano” Delgado was sentenced on March 13 to one year in prison and three years of supervised release for accepting bribes, a reduced sentence because he reached a plea agreement and cooperated with the Federal Prosecutor’s Office to prosecute businessmen and politicians. .
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