Puerto Rico Governor Demands Mayors Resign After Arrest Report

(Bloomberg) -- Puerto Rico Governor Pedro Pierluisi demanded two mayors resign after a newspaper reported their arrest on public corruption charges, saying the case represented another “hard blow to public trust.” 

“I have been firm with these types of cases and this time is not the exception,” Pierluisi said in a statement Thursday. “I demand the immediate resignation of both mayors arrested today and I expect the full weight of the law to fall on them.”

El Nuevo Dia newspaper reported that the FBI had arrested Reinaldo Vargas Rodriguez, the mayor of Humacao, and Javier Garcia Perez, the mayor of Aguas Buenas. The Department of Justice declined to confirm the arrests but has called a press conference for later on Thursday. 

Read More: Puerto Rico Mayor Took Cash, Rolexes in Contract Plot, DOJ Says

While corruption scandals have roiled the U.S. commonwealth of 3.2 million people for decades, scrutiny on the handling of federal and local contracts has been mounting since Hurricane Maria raked the island in 2017. Partially in response, the Donald Trump administration established additional controls that delayed the release of billions in recovery funds.

If the arrests are confirmed, they would be the fifth and sixth current and former Puerto Rican mayors arrested on public corruption charges since 2020. 

Read More: Puerto Rico Corruption Probe Gathers Speed With More Arrests (2)

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