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    Senior Member JohnDoe2's Avatar
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    Former Sunland Park mayor-elect arrested on 18 counts

    Former Sunland Park mayor-elect arrested on 18 counts

    By Brian Fraga \ Las Cruces Sun-Newselpasotimes.com
    Posted: 04/07/2012 12:00:00 AM MDT

    SUNLAND PARK -- Authorities once again arrested former Sunland Park Mayor-elect Daniel Salinas, this time involving an alleged scheme to bill the town thousands of dollars for entertainment that included strippers and prostitutes at a conference in Mexico.

    Salinas, 28, who is already facing bribery and extortion charges in two other cases, also allegedly conspired to charge Sunland Park for a campaign video by hiding the expense in a bill for a video promoting a border-crossing project, according to court documents.

    On Friday, New Mexico State Police arrested Salinas on 18 criminal counts, which include fraud, conspiracy to commit fraud, receiving an illegal kickback, soliciting an illegal kickback, making or permitting false public vouchers, violation of ethical principles of public service and prohibited official acts for personal financial interest.

    Attempts to contact his lawyer Joshua Spencer were not successful.

    Authorities also arrested Jorge I. Angulo, 69, of El Paso, who allegedly conspired with Salinas to set up a scheme in which Angulo charged Sunland Park for lodging, meals, alcohol and strippers he allegedly provided Salinas and three city employees during the November 2011 border conference.

    Angulo is charged with six counts, which include fraud, conspiracy to commit fraud, making or permitting false public vouchers and conspiracy to commit making or permitting false public vouchers.

    Jesus Dario Hernandez, Sunland Park's public works director, is also facing related charges of fraud, making or permitting false public vouchers, and violation of ethical principles of public service.
    Hernandez, 55, has been at large since authorities issued an arrest warrant for him earlier this year charging him with tampering with evidence in connection with the extortion investigation.

    He is thought to be in Mexico.

    The latest case, detailed in court documents, add another layer of alleged wrongdoing in Sunland Park. Ten city employees have been arrested since February, and it is now without a mayor because Salinas, who was elected to that position on March 6, lost a legal challenge this week to be sworn in before an April 5 deadline.

    A New Mexico District Court judge earlier this year barred Salinas from City Hall after he was charged in an alleged extortion plot to blackmail a rival mayoral candidate with a video showing him with a topless dancer.

    Salinas is also charged with bribery for allegedly installing the city's acting police chief in exchange for the chief's sister not running for a City Council seat held by a Salinas political ally.

    The new allegations involve a contract with Envirosystems Management Consultants, a firm based in Santa Teresa, hired to conduct the environmental impact study needed for a border crossing. Angulo managed and ran the firm with a business partner, authorities said.

    Before the city entered into the contract, Salinas allegedly ordered Jaime Aguilera, the city manager, to collect a $10,000 campaign donation from Angulo, as well as another $10,000 that Angulo donated to City Councilor Angelica Marquez's campaign, court records said.

    During Nov. 17-19, 2011, Salinas, then Sunland Park's mayor pro tem, attended the XXIV Border Legislative Conference in Saltillo, Coahuila, with Hernandez, Aguilera and Arturo Alba, the city's public information officer, according to court documents.

    Angulo met the Sunland Park officials at the conference and provided each of them $250 a day in spending money. Angulo also paid for their hotel, meals and nightlife, which involved alcohol and visits to strip clubs. Angulo also paid for Salinas and Alba to visit a brothel, according to court documents.

    Salinas allegedly set up a scheme in which Angulo would send an invoice to the city through Envirosystems. The money would then be paid back to Angulo through the city's border-crossing fund, court records said.

    Envirosystems billed the city $10,240.72 for what it said were travel expenses, lodging, transportation and the costs incurred during the border conference, authorities said.

    Aguilera, who himself also is facing extortion charges in an unrelated case, told investigators that Salinas believed they were entitled to the compensation and benefits provided by Angulo because of the Envirosystems contract, according to court documents.

    After the Mexico trip, Angulo allegedly contracted with a local media design company to produce videos for the border-crossing project and for Salinas' mayoral campaign, authorities said.

    The border-crossing promotion video was filmed in El Paso and showed Angulo and his business partner in a staged scene, court records said.

    The Salinas campaign video showed him giving a speech and also depicted several city employees including Sunland Park police Sgt. Jaime Reyes in various staged scenes.

    Reyes later told investigators that he had been told that Salinas wanted him to be filmed for a Sunland Park promotional video, not for Salinas' campaign, court records said.

    Alba, who is also facing extortion charges in an earlier case, recently told investigators that there had been several meetings at Sunland Park City Hall where Salinas, Aguilera and Angulo discussed the campaign and border-crossing project videos.

    Aguilera, who described the city's relationship with Envirosystems as "legitimate in some respects but illegitimate in others," told investigators that he had told Salinas that the cost of producing a campaign video was not worth it. He said Salinas replied that Angulo would pay for the video, and that it would be a hidden cost invoiced back to the city, court records said.

    Angulo told Alba that the Salinas video would cost $7,000. Envirosystems later billed Sunland Park $26,921 for the border-crossing promotional video.

    The bill included the hidden cost of Salinas' campaign video, authorities said.

    Brian Fraga can be reached at bfraga@lcsun-news.com; 575-541-5462; Follow him on Twitter @bfraga

    Former Sunland Park mayor-elect arrested on 18 counts - El Paso Times
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    Senior Member JohnDoe2's Avatar
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