Crystal City Mayor Ricardo Lopez Resigned Over Recall Petition And Federal Public Corruption Indictment

The Crystal City Clerk has verified a recall petition against three city officials including Mayor Lopez.

By H. Nelson Goodson

Hispanic News Network U.S.A.

February 12, 2016

Crystal City, Texas - On Friday, Ricardo Lopez, the Mayor of Crystal City and Councilman Roel Mata resigned shortly after the Crystal City Clerk's office verified recall petition signatures to recall Mayor Lopez, 40, Mayor Pro-tem and Councilman Rogelio G. Mata, 43, and Councilman Marco A. Rodriguez. Rodriguez who was arrested last month for human trafficking and Mata have yet to resign and will face a recall election to oust them from office. The three city officials were among five who were indicted by a federal grand jury for bribery and public corruption charges while in office. Two other city officials who were also indicted are Councilman Roel Mata, 44, and City Manager and Attorney William James Jonas III, 54. Former Councilman Gilbert Urrabazo, 45, and businessman Ngoc Tri Nguyen, 38, aka, "Mr. T," a contractor and business man were indicted as well for bribery and corruption charges.

KSAT 12 reported that Selina Ramos, the City Clerk had refused Mayor Lopez to sign the City Council agenda to make it official. Ramos also left her office and refused to meet with media over the controversy. Lopez says, the City agenda needed to be signed by him in order to become official. Police later confronted Mayor Lopez and told him not to contact Ramos until she contacts him. Police neither Ramos explained if they had a court order barring Mayor Lopez and the Council from conducting a meeting causing chaos at City Hall on Friday. Lopez intended to resign after the Council meeting. Councilman Joel Barrajas is the only one who hasn't been indicted for bribery charges.
Last Thursday, the FBI raided City Hall in Crystal City resulting with the arrest of four City officials including Mayor Lopez, Mayor Pro-Tem Mata,  City Councilman Roel Mata and Interim City Manager and Attorney Jonas III, also taken into custody were former City Councilman Urrabazo and businessman Nguyen in connection with taking bribes to help Nguyen, a contractor to establish 8-liner gaming rooms around Crystal City and providing city tax waivers, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Western District of Texas. The 8-liner gaming operation paid players in cash and the gambling operation is illegal in Texas.

Rogelio, Lopez and Roel were taken into custody in Crystal City, Jonas and Urrabazo were arrested in San Antonio and Nguyen was arrested in Keller, Texas.

Each of the defendants were charged with one felony count each for conspiracy to commit bribery involving an entity receiving over $10,000 in federal funds, in addition, Jonas was charged with three counts for bribery, Rogelio, Roel, Urrabazo, Lopez and Ngugen were charged with one felony count each for bribery. If convicted, each defendant is facing up to 10 years in a federal prison and up to $250,000 in fines for each count.

The FBI also raided the San Antonio office of attorney Jonas to search for evidence connected to the bribing and gaming operation. Jonas who earned $216K per year as a Crystal City Manager allegedly took money from Nguyen in exchange to help facilitate the gaming operation in Crystal City.

The FBI, San Antonio Police, the Texas Rangers and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection took part in the joint gaming operation bust.

According to the unsealed indictment against the defendants named in the case, the defendants began to conspire to commit favorable action to award city service contracts valued at more than $12,000 to Nguyen beginning in April 2015. Nguyen in return paid Jonas up to $7,791, Urrabazo $2,000, Roel Mata $$2,000, Mayor Lopez received $6,000 to purchase a vehicle and Rogelio Mata up to $500.

The city officials indicted conspired and acted to "waived certain tax payments" for Nguyen and directed Crystal City employees "to close competing businesses and to conduct City inspections to benefit Nguyen," according to the federal indictment.

Carjacker Whooped And Knocked Out By Milwaukee Southside Vigilantes

Vigilantes who were not identified apparently beat, then partially stripped an alleged would be carjacker to his underwear, socks and knocked him down on the freezing snowy ground as nearby neighbors watched and took photos.

By H. Nelson Goodson

Hispanic News Network U.S.A.

February 8, 2016
(Updated)

Milwaukee, WI - On Monday, a suspected carjacker was left behind after a failed attempt to steal a caravan in Milwaukee's Southside. Several photos appeared on the social network showing an alleged carjacker who got a beating, knocked down and left on the snowy ground (sidewalk) partially unclothed.

According to a FB posting of a nextdoor neighbor of the intended carjacking victim, at least three Afro-Americans in a greenish or bluish Cavalier tried to steal a caravan around 1:50 p.m. near the 3200 block of W. Madison Street and a vigilante or vigilantes intervened and were able to beat up one of the car thieves.

The vigilantes then chased the suspects across the S. 35th St. Viaduct heading north, according to FB postings.

Police were notified after the suspect's photo began to circulate on FB. The suspect was arrested and police have initiated an investigation of the attempted Southside carjacking.

Update: On Tuesday, Hispanic News Network U.S.A. (HNNUSA) who first reported the incident on Monday was contacted by the Milwaukee Police Department (MPD) regarding the attempted carjacking incident at the 3200 block of W. Madison Street. Two alleged auto thief suspects have been taken into custody and one other man (vigilante) who arrived at the scene and took advantage of a detained suspect by the victim and battered the suspect is sought for battery by Milwaukee police.
Milwaukee Police Sergeant Timothy Gauerke from the Chief of Police Office released the following statement, "Milwaukee Police are investigating an attempted auto theft that happened on Monday, February 8th, around 1:50 p.m. in the 3200 block of W. Madison Street.  The victim observed two suspects in his vehicle attempting to steal it.  He confronted the suspects who fled.  The suspects attempted to enter a get-away vehicle and one of the suspects was successful.  The second suspect was confronted and punched by the victim.  The second suspect continued to flee on foot.   A witness attempted to detain the second suspect, grabbed him by the pants pulling them off, as the second suspect climbed a fence and continued to flee.  Shortly after, an unknown person battered the second suspect and posted it to Facebook.  MPD is working to determine who battered the second suspect.
"The second suspect, who is a 15-year-old Milwaukee male, has since been arrested and suffered a minor injury during this incident.  Once the investigation is complete the case will be referred to the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s office for charges against the 15-year-old for attempted motor vehicle theft, and the person responsible for battering the suspect."

Jonathan Aponte Santiago Charged For Multiple Armed Robberies And Facing 452 Years In Prison

Aponte Santiago has been charged with 11 felony counts for armed robbery and one count for 1st-degree reckless endangering safety, if convicted on all counts he is facing up to 452 years in prison.

By H. Nelson Goodson

Hispanic News Network U.S.A.

February 6, 2016

Milwaukee, WI - On Saturday, Jonathan Aponte Santiago, 22, was charged with 11 felony counts for armed robbery and one felony count for 1st-degree endangering safety in connection with multiple armed robberies in Milwaukee's Southside. Aponte Santiago is facing up to 40 years in prison and $100,000 fine for each armed robbery count and up to 12 years in prison and $25,000 in fines for reckless endangering of safety. A cash bail was set at $150,000 for Aponte Santiago, but a hold has been place, so he can't be bailed out.

Last Wednesday, at least 30 victims came forward and identified the kleptorobber as Aponte Santiago, who for several weeks terrorized local businesses by robbing them including patrons, in several occasions discharged his weapon inside bars, was wanted for an armed carjacking and shooting a 22-year-old Denny's waiter. His last armed robbery happened at Chivas Bar, 644 S. 9th Street around 2:20 a.m. on January 31. The suspect drank several beers, robbed the bar including the patrons, then fired at least three gunshots at a camera surveillance monitor missing a bartender by one inch and then fled. No one was injured.

Police told the Chivas Bar owner that his bar's surveillance footage of the armed robbery was clear and very instrumental in arresting the suspect.

Aponte Santiago allegedly robbed the Backdraught Bar at the 3600 block of S. Clement Ave., the Last Drop Restaurant at the 1900 block of S. 15th Street and Reynas Bar at the 600 block of W. Harrison in the Southside. About 14 patrons were inside Reynas Bar at the time of the robbery.

Aponte Santiago not only robbed the cash register at businesses, but customers too, according to business patrons. 

On January 28, Aponte Santiago walked into a Denny's Restaurant at the 4900 block of S. Howell Ave. around 3:15 a.m. and stole an undetermined amount of money from the cash register. Aponte Santiago also shot a 22-year-old victim who works at Denny's as a waiter and was taken to a local hospital for treatment of a non-life threatening gunshot wound, according to police.

At least ten people were inside the restaurant at the time of the robbery. Aponte Santiago shot the 22-year-old waiter in the arm and then left. The victim will be out of work for at least two weeks while recovering from the gun shot wound. He worked for tips and Aponte Santiago took $150.00 from him, according to the victim's mother. Aponte Santiago held a gun on the victim's head and the victim struggled with Aponte Santiago when he was shot.

Aponte Santiago was also involved in several other robberies and a carjacking as well, he robbed a business at the 2500 block of S. 6th Street at 1:20 a.m., then went to a second business at the 2000 block of S. 8th Street at 1:35 a.m. and demanded money. After receiving money, he fled on foot.

At about 2:00 a.m., Aponte Santiago pulled a gun at a 28-year-old man and stole his 2002 Isuzu Axiom. Aponte Santiago then fled in the vehicle and later robbed the Denny's Restaurant on S. Howell Ave.

Additional Southside Milwaukee businesses that Aponte Santiago robbed while armed are;

● Class Reunion Bar, 2204 W. Forest Home Ave.

● George Webb's Restaurant, 2028 W. Mitchell Street

● Marathon Gas Station, 1227 W. Oklahoma Ave.

● Park Place Sports Bar, 2079 S. 8th Street

● Stripes Bar, 3101 S. 15th Place

Crystal City Hall In Texas Closed After Gaming Sting Operation Busted Corrupt City Officials

Four Crystal City officials including Mayor Lopez arrested by FBI in connection for taking bribes in illegal gaming payoffs.

By H. Nelson Goodson

Hispanic News Network U.S.A.

February 4, 2016 

Crystal City, Texas - On Thursday, the FBI raided City Hall in Crystal City resulting with the arrest of four City officials including Mayor Richard Lopez, Mayor Pro-Tem Rogelio Mata, City Councilman Roel Mata and Interim City Manager and Attorney William James Jonas, III, also taken into custody were former City Councilman Gilbert Urrabazo and businessman Ngoc Tri Nguyen, aka, "Mr. T" in connection with taking bribes to help Nguyen, a contractor to establish 8-liner gaming rooms around Crystal City and providing city tax waivers, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Western District of Texas. The 8-liner gaming operation paid players in cash and the gambling operation is illegal in Texas.

City Hall remained closed on Thursday in Crystal City, but is expected to open on Friday.

The FBI raided the San Antonio office of attorney Jonas to search for evidence connected to the bribing and gaming operation. Jonas allegedly took money from Nguyen in exchange to help facilitate the gaming operation in Crystal City.

Some of the defendants are expected to appear before a federal judge later today to face charges.

The FBI, San Antonio Police, the Texas Rangers and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection took part in the joint gaming operation bust.

According to the unsealed indictment against the defendants named in the case, the defendants began to conspire to commit favorable action to award city service contracts valued at more than $12,000 to Nguyen beginning in April 2015. Nguyen in return paid Jonas up to $7,791, Urrabazo $2,000, Roel Mata $$2,000, Mayor Lopez received $6,000 to purchase a vehicle and Rogelio Mata up to $500.

The city officials indicted conspired and acted to "waived certain tax payments" for Nguyen and directed Crystal City employees "to close competing businesses and to conduct City inspections to benefit Nguyen," according to the federal indictment.

César E. Chávez Lifesize Bronze Statue To Be Unveiled On His Birthday In Milwaukee

The lifesize bronze statue depicting the late Farm Workers Union leader César E. Chávez will be unveiled on his birthday at the Milwaukee Southside Chavez Drive business district.

By H. Nelson Goodson

Hispanic News Network U.S.A.

February 3, 2016

Milwaukee, WI - On Wednesday, both Ian B. Bautista, the Executive Director of Clarke Square and Julio Maldonado, the Executive Director for the César E. Chávez Drive Business Improvement District #38 (BID #38) confirmed that the lifesize bronze statue of the late Farm Workers Union leader César E. Chávez will be unveiled on March 31st, his birthday.

The projected cost for the Chávez bronze statue was $40,000, the statue has been finished and is ready for placement on its final resting place this upcoming March.

The Chávez bronze statue will be placed at the 900 block of S. César E. Chávez Drive in the El Rey Super Market outdoor market place. The Chávez statue project is part of a three year FARM Project to promote small business economic growth in the 12th Aldermanic District that will include a rich cultural environment for tourists, a consumer retail, food and art base attraction to the heart of the Latino community.

Milwaukee will become the 8th location in the U.S. to unveil a Chávez life size bronze statue in the country.

Several Thieves Broke Into The National Liquor Mart On Chaves Drive

Several suspects stole an undetermined amout of items from the National Liquor Mart on Chaves Drive.

By H. Nelson Goodson

Hispanic News Network U.S.A.

February 3, 2016

Milwaukee, WI - On Wednesday, several thieves broke into the National Liquor Mart at the 700 block of S. Cesar E. Chaves Drive and stole merchandise just after 3:00 a.m., according to police. Video surveillance footage caught the images of the two thieves taking items from inside the liquor store. 

The video was posted on Facebook (FB) by the business manager who is asking FB users, if they can help identify the suspects.

Mass Shooting Planned By Samy Mohamed Hamzeh At Masonic Temple In Milwaukee, FBI Claimed

The FBI arrested a suspect who planned a mass shooting as an act of war at the Masonic temple in Milwaukee and wanted to be known worldwide for the massacre.

By H. Nelson Goodson

Hispanic News Network U.S.A.

January 26, 2016

Milwaukee, WI - On Tuesday, Acting United States Attorney Gregory J. Haanstad and Special Agent in Charge Robert J. Shields of the FBI's Milwaukee Division announced in a press release that Milwaukee resident Samy Mohamed Hamzeh, 23, has been charged with possessing machineguns and a silencer. 
According to the criminal complaint, Hamzeh had been under investigation since September 2015.  The investigation revealed that, in October 2015, Hamzeh planned to travel to Jordan, enter the West Bank, and conduct an attack on Israeli soldiers and citizens living in the West Bank.  Hamzeh later abandoned those plans and began to focus on conducting an attack in the United States.
According to the criminal complaint, Hamzeh has engaged in extensive conversations with two confidential sources (referred to here as CS-1 and CS-2).  Those conversations, which were in Arabic, were monitored, recorded, and translated by the FBI beginning in October 2015. 
During those recorded conversations, Hamzeh explained that he wanted to commit a domestic act of violence and, earlier this month, he settled on a Masonic temple in Milwaukee as his target.

On January 19, 2016, Hamzeh, CS-1 and CS-2 took a guided tour of the Masonic temple, during which they learned meeting schedules and where people would be located during meetings.  In a recorded conversation after they left the temple, Hamzeh, discussed his plans with CS-1 and CS-2.  In that conversation, Hamzeh reaffirmed his intention to commit an armed attack on the temple and discussed in further detail how they would carry out the attack.

Hamzeh said that they would need two machineguns so that they each would have one (Hamzeh indicated that one CS already had a machinegun), and also said that they would need three silencers: 

● "We want two machineguns, you now have one, so we want two more, and we need three silencers, that's it. Find out how much all together these will cost, and then we will march."

● "We want two, like the machinegun you have. . . . And we need silencers. . . . Three, yes three silencers, and that's it."

● ". . . each one has a weapon, each one has a silencer gun, the operation will be one hundred percent successful. I am telling you, to go without silencer gun, you will be exposed from the beginning."

Hamzeh also explained to CS1 and CS2 that, when they executed the attack at the temple, one of the three of them would have to stay at the main door while the others went upstairs to kill the people who would be meeting there:

● "one of us will stay at the door at the entrance and lock the door down, he will be at the main door down, two will get to the lift up, they will enter the room, and spray everyone in the room. The one who is standing downstairs will spray anyone he finds. We will shoot them, kill them and get out. We will walk and walk, after a while, we will be covered as if it is cold, and we'll take the covers off and dump them in a corner and keep on walking, as if nothing happened, as if everything is normal. But one has to stand on the door, because if no one stood at the door, people will be going in and out, if people came in from outside and found out what is going on, everything is busted."

● "As long as the one on the door understands he has bigger responsibility than the others. For your information, he has to take care of everyone around him, the comers and the one that wants to go, he has to annihilate everyone, there is no one left, I mean when we go into a room, we will be killing everyone, that's it, this is our duty, as for the one at the door, he must have 20/20 eye vision and always alert for all the traffic around him."

● "I am telling you, as I was saying, all three of us get in together, one will go, to the one that is staying at the reception . . . . If she was alone, it is okay, if there were two of them, shoot both of them, do not let the blood show, shoot her from the bottom, two or three shots in her stomach and let her sit on the chair and push her to the front, as if she is sleeping, did you understand? Then stay downstairs, the other two will take the lift to the third floor, go directly to the room, open the door, shoot everyone, move fast even avoiding the lift and take the stairs running down. . . . Using the stairs, the third one on the door will notice us coming down, we will go out together. No one sees anything and no one knows anything. We leave, as if there is nothing, no running, no panic, just regular walking. We'll get three head covers with three holes in them. . . . we'll get in all three of us together, the minute we get in, we shoot whoever is in front of us, and all have to be eliminated. One stays down and two will go up quickly.

● "And we will eliminate everyone."

Hamzeh also explained what his objectives were in committing the attack:

● "I am telling you, if this hit is executed, it will be known all over the world. . . . Sure, all over the world, all the Mujahedeen will be talking and they will be proud of us. . . such operations will increase in America, when they hear about it. The people will be scared and the operations will increase, and there will be problems all over, because more than one problem took place, and this will be the third problem, this will lead to people clashing with each other. This way we will be igniting it. I mean we are marching at the front of the war."

● "They are all Masonic; they are playing with the world like a game, man, and we are like asses, we don't know what is going on, these are the ones who are fighting, these are the ones that needs to be killed, not the Shi'iat, because these are the ones who are against us, these are the ones who are making living for us like hell."

● "Thirty is excellent.If I got out, after killing thirty people, I will be happy 100%. . . . 100% happy, because these 30 will terrify the world."

Hamzeh made plans to purchase machineguns and silencers from two individuals who, unbeknownst to Hamzeh, were undercover FBI agents.  He met with them, along with CS-1 and CS-2, on January 25, 2016.  The undercover agents displayed the weapons and a silencer to Hamzeh, told him that the weapons were capable of automatic fire, and explained to him the functioning of the selector switch that allowed the weapons to fire automatically.  Hamzeh agreed to a price and paid it to the undercover agents, who then handed Hamzeh a bag containing two automatic weapons and a silencer.  Hamzeh carried the bag to the vehicle in which he had traveled to the meeting, and he placed the bag in the trunk of the vehicle.  He then was arrested and has been charged with illegally possessing machineguns.
Acting United States Attorney Gregory J. Haanstad said, "Samy Mohamed Hamzeh devised a detailed plan to commit a mass shooting intended to kill dozens of people.  He also said that he wanted this mass shooting to be 'known the world over' and to 'ignite' broader clashes.  It is difficult to calculate the injury and loss of life that was prevented by concerned citizens coming forward and by the tireless efforts of the FBI and the Joint Terrorism Task Force."

Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Robert J. Shields said, "The arrest of Samy Mohamed Hamzeh is the result of a well-coordinated undercover law enforcement action, at no time was the public's safety placed in jeopardy.  I would like to commend the efforts of the Joint Terrorism Task Force which includes our local and state law enforcement partners in thwarting an attack that could have resulted in significant injury and /or loss of life."
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Paul L. Kanter, according to the press release.