“I am innocent and a great injustice has been committed,” Vasquez told reporters after her release. “I have committed no crime.” A former Vázquez political adviser and the president of an international bank pleaded guilty to participating in the bribery scheme, according to a DOJ statement. A former FBI agent and the owner of the international bank that operated in San Juan also participated in the alleged scheme, federal officials say. From December 2019 to June 2020, the 62-year-old former governor allegedly conspired in a scheme to finance her gubernatorial campaign, according to the DOJ. Vázquez allegedly received more than $300,000 from two businessmen to fund political consultants during her campaign, Stephen Muldrow, Puerto Rico’s district attorney, told reporters Thursday. Vazquez and others are charged with conspiracy, federal bribery schemes and honest services fraud. The former governor, who is named in three of seven counts in an indictment, faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted. “The alleged bribery scheme reached the highest levels of Puerto Rico’s government, threatening public confidence in our electoral processes and institutions of government,” said Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr. The bribes were allegedly paid in exchange for Vasquez getting an appointment at the Office of the Commissioner of Financial Institutions that benefited the businessmen involved in the scheme, Muldow said. The indictment alleged that the owner of the international bank and his adviser — the former FBI agent — agreed to provide financing for Basque’s campaign in exchange for replacing the island’s top banking regulator with one of their choosing. At the time, the bank was “under review” by the regulator, federal prosecutors say. Multrow said the island’s current governor, who defeated Vazquez in an election, was not involved in the plan. A former Minister of Justice, Vázquez served as governor of the US territory from 2019 to 2021. Her appointment came after disgraced former governor Ricardo Rosselló was forced to resign following island-wide protests against his government. He became justice minister in January 2017 — with a mandate that included fighting corruption on the island — and was an ally of Rosselló. In 2018, Vazquez came under fire for allegedly intervening on behalf of her daughter in a case stemming from a home burglary. He faced charges of violating government ethics laws. But a judge later ruled there was insufficient evidence to arrest her.

Arrest affects ‘our people’s trust’

Vázquez’s brief tenure as governor was controversial. Her ties to the disgraced former governor brought scrutiny. Critics have accused her of failing to open investigations into members of her own party, particularly Rosselló and his government over the handling of the aftermath of Hurricane Maria in 2017. In January 2020, Puerto Ricans poured into the streets of San Juan calling for her resignation after supplies from Hurricane Maria were discovered in a warehouse in the city of Ponce more than two years after the storm.
Later that year, Puerto Rican officials confirmed that Vásquez was being investigated for suspected mismanagement of funds intended to mitigate earthquake damage on the island. Mayra Velez Serrano, a political science professor at the University of Puerto Rico in Rio Piedras, said Thursday that many people on the island were shocked by the arrest, but not entirely surprised. “For the former justice minister … and former governor, who is married to a judge, to be involved in something like this and to be arrested is still shocking,” Velez said. “This continues to undermine public confidence in the political system and its politicians in both major parties.” Puerto Rico Gov. Pedro Pierluigi, who was elected governor after Vázquez lost in the primary, said Thursday: “Under my administration there is zero tolerance for corruption.” “Today we see once again that no one is above the law in Puerto Rico,” Pierluigi, a member of the same pro-Commonwealth party as Vasquez, said in Spanish via Twitter. The arrest “definitely affects and shakes the confidence of our people,” the governor said.
“I reiterate that in my administration we will continue to stand united with the federal authorities against anyone who commits an improper act,” the governor said. “Wherever it comes from and whoever it involves, as well as promoting initiatives and following up on the bills I have introduced to fight corruption,” he said. In 2019, Rosselló chose Pierluisi as his successor. His short-lived term ended after just five days when the Puerto Rico Supreme Court declared his term as governor unconstitutional. Vázquez was then sworn in. “In light of the decision of the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico, I must step down and support the Attorney General of Puerto Rico,” Pierluisi said in a statement at the time. Pierluigi then won the election for the seat in November 2020.