CALEXICO â Former Calexico City Councilman and Mayor Pro Tem David Romero and Bruno Suarez-Soto, a former commissioner on the cityâs Economic Development and Financial Advisory Commission, were each sentenced Wednesday to two years in prison for taking bribes in exchange for guaranteeing a city permit for a cannabis business.
In announcing the sentences, U.S. District Judge Cathy Ann Bencivengo said public officials should not take positions of power to line their own pockets and that the pairâs conduct âtaints how we hope to believe democracy works.â
Romero. 37, and Suarez-Soto, 29, both Calexico residents, pleaded guilty on June 11 to conspiracy to commit federal program bribery.