WASHINGTON—An elected county commissioner of the Webb County in Texas was sentenced Tuesday to six years and four months in prison for accepting bribes in exchange for official actions,
U.S. District Judge Marina Garcia Marmolejo also ordered Kristopher Michael “Mike” Montemayor, 37, of Laredo, to pay a fine of $109,405.72 and to forfeit $13,721.16.
In his plea agreement, Montemayor admitted that he solicited and accepted multiple bribes in exchange for promising to perform official acts.
Specifically, Montemayor admitted that he accepted three separate bribe payments totaling $11,000 and over $2,700 in electronics and other merchandise, including two Apple iPads and two pairs of Dr. Dre Beats Solo HD headphones, from a businessman who, unbeknownst to Montemayor, was an undercover law enforcement agent.
In exchange for the cash and the other items, Montemayor promised to take various forms of official action to promote the business interests of the undercover agent.
Montemayor also admitted to accepting a 2012 Ford F-150 pick-up truck, worth approximately $37,000, in exchange for providing government jobs to the vehicle owner and his spouse.
As a result of these appointments, the vehicle owner and his wife received salaries of $26,000 and $45,553 from Webb County. Montemayor admitted that the vehicle owner performed little or no work in exchange for his government salary.