In a County overflowing with corruption scandals you would think politicians would be more careful about who they hire at the taxpayer’s expense. Unfortunately in El Paso the politicos love to publically castigate those accussed of corruption while pounding their chests proclaiming that they are not corrupt.
All this while making backdoor deals to funnel more taxpayer money to their supporters.
It should not come as a surprise to anyone that in a corrupt infested society such as El Paso, a politician proclaiming I’m not one of the corrupt ones gets elected and promptly puts a blogger, who supported him throughout the election, on the public dole.
Corruption in a community manifests itself because the politicans allow it to and partake of it, the electorate becomes so disfranchised that they keep electing the very people who steal their money and the media ignores political shenanigans when it is convenient while pouncing on the ones that serve its immediate purpose or those of its masters.
Jaime Abeytia, self-proclaimed political activist, further illustrates that in El Paso it’s all about making sure the public treasury is handed out to political operatives rather than for the good of the community.
County Commissioner Vince Perez secretly made the appointment of Abeytia shortly after his election making sure to keep it a secret from the general public by not publically acknowledging it although it was common knowledge within political circles. I’m sure Perez will argue that he hadn’t taken office yet, or that Abeytia still had a political blog active and it needed to be closed down before making such an appointment public.
Although, as in public corruption matters, the truth will never be known as it is not convenient for the participants to have the truth known, the fact is that the appointment smelled of corruption from the very moment it was made.
Jaime Abeytia’s arrest last friday is not an isloated case for him and the process itself shows how permeated the corruption is at the county.
It is obvious that Abeytia was given the heads up within the County of El Paso to allow him to turn himself in and avoid the embarrassment of the “perp walk”. This, in itself, is a special consideration. The question is, was this special consideration offered to Vince Perez, Jaime Abeytia or both?
Either way, it is corrupt.
As for Jaime, this is not the first time he has been charged with a crime.
On April 6, 1999 he was accused of “theft of property” for misusing a check, a class B misdemeanor. This case was settled when he made restitution on April 26, 2007.
On December 3, 2002 a warrant for his arrest was issued out of Maricopa County against Jaime Abeytia for failure to pay child support. As of, Sunday, February 10, 2013 this warrant was still listed in the Maricopa County’s website.
On May 21, 2004 he was accused of a class A misdemeanor, in this case it was some type of “computer security breach”. This case was refiled on December 17, 2004. On July 24, 2007 Jaime Abeytia accepted “deferred adjudication” for this crime. He was assessed six months of probation and 100 hours of community service.
During his blogging days, his participation on political forums and on his radio days it became common knowledge that this case involved him taking electronic files that were not his from an employer. It further became public knowledge that he blamed his attorney for the out come of the case.
Hmmm, here is a pattern developing; it’s everyone else’s fault but his own. Typical corruption.
And then we have last friday’s case. It was filed on May 13, 2012 as a State Felony where it is alleged that he unlawfully accessed stored files on a communication device.
The El Paso Times reported about the arrest adding that part of the charges include the “display of harmful material to a minor“.
As is common practice with the El Paso Times, it doesn’t bother to do a quick online check for other arrests involving Abeytia and lets him off with the simple explanation of it’s “a personal matter”.
I wonder how the El Paso Times would have dealt with if the arrestee had been someone critical of them.
What is important to note is that there is a pattern for Jaime Abeytia and it involves “family matters“, computer hacking and theft. Family matters should be personal issues as long as it is not detrimental to the elderly or children. Abeytia has a warrant in Arizona for not paying child support and now it is another case of “divorce”, but this time it seems to involve images of children.
Vince Perez, for his part, is not new to politics, having worked in Silvestre Reyes’ office for many years. His comments in response to Abeytia’s arrest betrays his own issues when it comes to using public funds for his own benefit. However you look at it, Jaime Abeytia benefited Perez’ political aspirations and hiring him with public funds further benefits Vince Perez. Therefore; “it’s a family matter” only helps Vince Perez while it continues to cost the taxpayers’ money in keeping Abeytia on the public dole.
This is not Abeytia’s first criminal issue and the latest one is a state felony. These cases show a continued pattern of criminal intent by Abeytia, which in itself makes him unworthy of the public money he receives each pay check.
As for Vince Perez, his inaction to Abeytia’s arrest, his excuse of it being only a “family matter” and not knowing the criminal history of his employee betrays a sense that Perez is just another political hack in a county of corrupt politicians looking to line their own pockets.
And the corruption continues.
