Ex-mayor of Puerto Rican town sent to prison
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — The former long-time mayor of the Puerto Rican town of Barceloneta has been sentenced to prison for bribery.
Sol Luis Fontanes Olivo wept and said he was ashamed of his actions as he was sentenced yesterday to the maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. Fontanes pleaded guilty in April to bribery and obstruction of justice. He was charged following an FBI investigation with bribery for soliciting a US$50,000 bribe from a developer seeking to rezone land in the town on the north coast of Puerto Rico. He was also accused along with another local official of seeking about US$40,000 in illegal payments in connection with a public land deal in the town.
Fontanes was elected in 1986 until he resigned after his arrest in February.
