Washington, D.C.

Members of the Border Caucus –Reps. Raul Grijalva (AZ-03), Filemon Vela (TX-34), Henry Cuellar (TX-28), Beto O’Rourke (TX-16), and Pete Gallego (TX-23) today held a press conference to highlight the impact of the border region on the U.S. economy.

Jose Flores III indicted on federal charges

Staff

-Del Rio, TX

In Eagle Pass on July 23rd, Federal Bureau of Investigation agents along with Texas Department of public Safety Investigators arrested local contractor Jose Flores III, owner of JSML, LLC, N5 Group, LLC, and King Construction based in Eagle Pass announced Unites States Attorney Robert Pitman.

A Federal Grand Jury has handed down an indictment, returned on July 17th, charges Flores on two counts of bank fraud and wire fraud.

Flores had his initial appearance on July 23, 2013 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Collis White in Del Rio.

Flores was released on a $20,000.00 unsecured bond.

Unpon conviction, he faces up to 30 years imprisonment on the bank fraud charge and up to 20 years imprisonment on the wire fraud charge.

The case has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Alia Moses.

An indictment is merely a charge and should not be considered as evidence of guilt.  The defendant is innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

According to the report, The defendant, Jose Flores III, devised and executed a scheme and artifice to defraud TAB Bank, Inc. by fraudulently submitting an illegitimate invoice from a fictitious client to TAB.

TAB is a financial institution focused primarily on providing working capital, equipment financing and deposit products to a variety of commercial enterprises, including businesses involved in the trucking and transportation industries.  Dpeosits made by TAB are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation ("FDIC"), and have been so insured since TAB's formation in 1998.

The defendant as officers of N5, executed a Large Fleet Accounts Receivable Financing Application with TAB on April 18, 2011.  Several days thereafter, the application was approved and N5 opened an accout with TAB.

On July 1, 2011, the defendant, on behalf of N5, submitted an invoice to TAB for an account receivable to be factored.  According to this invoice, N5 had performed more than 680 hours of work for BB Paving in June and July 2011.  As putative validation for this invoice, the defendant included 70 time sheets detailing the hours allegedly worked by several truck drivers.  For this work, the defendant claimed that BB Paving owed $51,000 to N5.

All of the BB Paving invoices were completely fraudulent, and all of the time sheets provided by the defendant were wholly falsified.  In actuality, N5 had performed absolutely no work for BB Paving.

Representing the U.S. is Timothy Adam duree and the defendant's counsel is Michael McCrum of San Antonio.

Man accused of intoxication manslaughter pleas guilty;

Accident occurred in 2010 on new Casino Road

A.D. Ibarra

-Eagle Pass

Raul Rodriguez, 38, has plead guilty to the charge of intoxication manslaughter in the 293rd District Court before The Honorable Cynthia Muñiz on Thursday according to District Attorney Roberto Serna.

The plea comes in the wake of a head-on collision on the road to the casino known as Tierra Soberana Road on December 11, 2010 and caused the death of Adeline Jane Hutson from San Antonio.

Mrs. Hutson had come to Eagle Pass to go to the casino with other family members.

A pre-sentencing report was ordered by the Court and sentencing was set for January 13, 2014 at 9:30 A.M.

"These cases are taken very seriously by the D.A.'s Office," stated District Attorney Roberto Serna, "They will be fully prosecuted where the evidence and facts so warrant and to obtain justice for the victims of these drinking and driving cases which result in death."