By Ginika Igboke
President Donald Trump has granted a full pardon to former Puerto Rico Gov. Wanda Vázquez Garced, who was charged in a federal bribery case in 2022, according to the Department of Justice.
Vázquez Garced was arrested in August 2022 on allegations that she participated in a bribery scheme between December 2019 and June 2020 while serving as governor, allegedly to finance her reelection campaign. She pleaded guilty last year to accepting a campaign donation from a foreign national during the 2020 election cycle.
A DOJ document shows that Trump issued Vázquez Garced a “full and unconditional pardon” on Jan. 15. The president also pardoned two of her co-defendants—Venezuelan banker Julio Martin Herrera Velutini and political consultant Mark Rossini—clearing them of their criminal charges as part of a broader list of clemency grants.
The White House has not released a public statement regarding the pardons and did not respond to requests for comment as of publication.
Vázquez Garced assumed office in August 2019 after then-Gov. Ricardo Rosselló resigned amid widespread protests. She served until 2021, after losing the primary election of the pro-statehood New Progressive Party.
Federal prosecutors alleged that during her 2020 reelection bid, Vázquez Garced accepted bribes in exchange for official actions. According to the indictment, Herrera Velutini and Rossini allegedly paid more than $300,000 to political consultants supporting her campaign after she demanded the resignation of the head of Puerto Rico’s Office of the Commissioner of Financial Institutions, which had been investigating Herrera Velutini’s bank. Vázquez Garced later appointed a replacement commissioner reportedly selected by Herrera Velutini.
After losing the party primary in August 2020 to Pedro Pierluisi—who later became governor—Herrera Velutini allegedly attempted to bribe her successor, identified in court documents as “public official A.”
Prosecutors charged Vázquez Garced, Herrera Velutini, and Rossini with conspiracy, federal programs bribery, and honest services wire fraud. If convicted, they could have faced sentences of up to 20 years in prison.
Two additional individuals, Frances Diaz and John Blakeman, were also charged in the case. Both pleaded guilty in March 2022 to conspiring with Herrera Velutini and others in the attempted bribery of the new governor.
Vázquez Garced is the first former Puerto Rico governor to face federal criminal charges. Former Gov. Aníbal Acevedo Vilá was charged with campaign finance violations while in office but was acquitted in 2009.
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