FORMER MISSION CITY MANAGER AND PARKS DIRECTOR PLEAD GUILTY IN BRIBERY CASE

(McALLEN, Texas) - Isauro Trevino and Joe Villegas have pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit extortion, United States Attorney Don DeGabrielle announced today. Trevino was the former City Manager of Mission and Villegas was the Director of Parks and Recreation until the City of Mission suspended him after indictment in this case.

At the hearing this morning before United States District Judge Randy Crane, both Trevino and Villegas pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit extortion under color of official right. This conviction carries a punishment of up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. Both defendants are out on bond and will remain free on bond pending their sentencing hearing scheduled for Sept. 30, 2008.

At the plea hearing, Trevino admitted to receiving bribes in exchange for favorable treatment in the awarding and approval of various City of Mission projects while he served as city manager from 2002 through mid-2005. Trevino received free stucco at his home in Mission in the fall of 2002 from contractors Daniel Rodriguez and David Trevino, who were awarded a project from Mission for the construction of a skate park at Catholic War Veteran's Park in 2003. Isauro Trevino also admitted to receiving numerous bribes from Rene Cavazos, whose companies Wrangler Construction and Rene Cavazos Trucking, received hundreds of thousands of dollars from Mission for projects at city parks and for sludge removal. Many of the projects Cavazos was awarded were split into phases to evade the public notice and city council-approval requirements for projects in excess of $25,000. After receiving payments from Mission, Cavazos typically gave cash payments to Isauro Trevino who deposited the tens of thousands of dollars from Cavazos into an account established at a McAllen bank in the name of his mother-in-law. Rene Cavazos and David Trevino pleaded guilty in this case last October. Daniel Rodriguez is currently serving a prison term arising out of another public corruption case.

Villegas also admitted to receiving cash payments from Cavazos after Cavazos received payments from the Parks and Recreation Department. Cavazos told the FBI he would typically give cash to both Villegas and Isauro Trevino when he received payment for a Parks Department project. Villegas also admitted to accepting three bids from an undercover FBI agent in January 2003 for athletic equipment at the Mission Adult Recreation Center. The FBI undercover agent submitted his own bid along with a fake or "dummy" bid which he told Villegas was "dummied up." The undercover agent also submitted a third bid from another company that a Mission official had disclosed, thus allowing the undercover agent to come in as the low bidder.

The case was investigated by agents with the McAllen Office of the FBI and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Gregg Costa and Larry Eastepp.