The mayor pro-tem and city manager of Edcouch have both been taken into custody on public corruption charges, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.
Victor Hugo De La Cruz, 40, and Rene Flores, 60, both of Edcouch, are set to make their initial appearances before U.S. Magistrate Judge J. Scott Hacker at 9:00 a.m. September 13.
A federal grand jury returned the four-count indictment under seal on September 2, unsealed upon their arrests.
The indictment alleges that from June to September 2019, De La Cruz, city manager, and Flores, mayor pro-tem, solicited bribe payments from the owner of a Brownsville business that provides marketing services throughout the Rio Grande Valley. The business owner allegedly received two separate $3,000 payments for marketing work he was allegedly performing for the city of Edcouch.
He made two $1,000 kickback payments to Flores, according to the charges.
De la Cruz and Flores are charged with conspiracy and bribery concerning programs receiving federal funds and use of a facility in interstate commerce in furtherance of bribery.
If convicted, they both face up to 10 years in federal prison, a possible $250,000 maximum fine on the bribery charge, and five years for the conspiracy and use of a facility in interstate commerce.
The FBI conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert S. Johnson and K. Alejandra Andrade are prosecuting the case.
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