Two former FEMA officials, including one of the agency’s top administrators, were arrested on federal fraud and bribery charges in connection with their work in Puerto Rico since Hurricane Maria hit the island in 2017.
The FBI also arrested the ex-president of Cobra Acquisitions, contracted to work with federal officials on the restoration of Puerto Rico’s power grid, which sustained widespread damages in the storm.
Ahsha Tribble and Jovanda Patterson of FEMA, along with then-Cobra president Ellison, were sent to Puerto Rico as part of the recovery and restoration of the electric power grid after Maria.
According to the indictment, Tribble and Ellison allegedly “developed a personal relationship wherein Ellison provided Tribble with things of value with the intent to influence Tribble’s performance of official acts. Ellison provided Tribble with personal helicopter use, hotel accommodations, airfare, personal security services, and the use of a credit card,” the Justice Department said in a statement.
“These defendants were supposed to come to Puerto Rico to help during the recovery after the devastation suffered from Hurricane María. Instead, they decided to take advantage of the precarious conditions of our electric power grid and engaged in a bribery and honest services wire fraud scheme in order to enrich themselves illegally,” said U.S. Attorney Rosa Emilia Rodríguez-Vélez.
Source : Nbcnewyork
