Pico Rivera Mayor Accused Of Reimbursing Campaign Donations To Montebello School Board Member
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — The mayor of Pico Rivera has been charged, along with the owner of an educational consulting firm, with improperly reimbursing family members and friends for donating money to the campaign of a Montebello school board member.
Gustavo Vidal Camacho, 54, and Luis Diaz Rojas, 55, were each charged with felony conspiracy to commit improper identification of a campaign contributor and a misdemeanor count of making a campaign contribution under a false name or improper identification of a campaign contributor, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.
Camacho was first elected to the Pico Rivera City Council in November of 2009 and has served as mayor three times.
Rojas, the owner of the DelTerra Group, and Camacho are each accused of taking part in a scheme to launder contributions to Joanna Flores, a board member of the Montebello Unified School District. According to the District Attorney's Office, donors were reimbursed after being enlisted by Rojas and Camacho to sign checks to the Flores campaign.
If convicted as charged, both men face up to three years in county jail. They are both scheduled to make their next court appearance on Oct. 8.