Assistant police chief accused of criminal scam

By RYAN HOLEYWELL

The Monitor

PHARR - The city's assistant police chief is under investigation for allegedly pocketing thousands of dollars from the sale of traffic accident reports to a lawyer and several chiropractors.

Assistant Police Chief Javier Perez - a 20-year veteran of the department - is accused of earning at least $50,000 by selling hundreds of reports over a three-year period.

He had not yet been charged with a crime Wednesday, though a source with knowledge of the case said at least one charge seemed likely.

Perez did not return multiple messages left at his office and on his cell phone Wednesday.

Accident reports are public information, but the Pharr Police Department typically releases the reports mid-week. Perez allegedly sold them before their official release.

Having a jump on competition, the lawyer would then contact victims of accidents and offer to represent them in lawsuits, the source said. Perez also allegedly sold reports to chiropractors who were part of the scam, the source said. If true, the allegations could amount to acting as an accomplice to barratry, or ambulance chasing, which is illegal.

The Pharr Police Department has been investigating its assistant police chief for months.

City commissioners met with Perez and Police Chief Ruben Villescas on Tuesday night to discuss the situation, but no action was taken.

On Wednesday, Villescas confirmed there is an ongoing police investigation into "possible misuses of official information," but he would not say whom the investigation involved.

The Hidalgo Count District Attorney's office is aware of the investigation and Perez remained on the force Wednesday, Villescas said.

Villescas said he is taking the investigation seriously and stressed the importance of maintaining the department's integrity. He did not know when the investigation would be complete.

"I see (the investigation) as important and we want to complete the investigation as soon as possible, but we want it to be a complete investigation where all the people and facts will be identified," he said.

City Manager Fred Sandoval also declined to elaborate on the matter, saying only there was an "ongoing investigation at the police department involving the dissemination of information."

City Commissioner Ricardo Medina confirmed that Pharr police were investigating a high-ranking police official, but he would not name the subject of the investigation.

Perez joined the Pharr Police Department in November 1988. Prior to that, he was employed for two and a half years at the Alamo Police Department.

Police received complaints from multiple accident victims who had asked how the lawyer was able to learn of their accidents so quickly, the source said. Perez is the only police official suspected of involvement in the alleged scam.