SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) - Federal authorities announced Wednesday that they have solved the high-profile killing of a New Jersey banking executive slain more than seven years ago in a drive-by shooting on one of Puerto Rico’s busiest highways.
Suspected drug traffickers targeted Maurice Spagnoletti in the June 2011 shooting because he was investigating improper bank transactions, U.S. Attorney Rosa Emilia Rodriguez told The Associated Press. Spagnoletti had moved with his wife to Puerto Rico eight months before the killing to become an executive vice president at Doral Bank, where he had begun questioning its accounting practices.
Six men have been charged in the case, including four who are facing murder charges. Four of the suspects were already in prison on other charges and two others were arrested at their homes in northern Puerto Rico early Wednesday, Rodriguez said. All six face a potential death penalty.
Rodriguez said one of the suspects, Rolando Rivera, owned a cleaning company that had received millions of dollars under a maintenance contract with the bank that Spagnoletti had canceled as part of his investigation because he found the amount “outlandish.”
“The company was being used for a money-laundering vehicle,” she said. “Spagnoletti became an encumbrance. So they had him killed.”
Doral Bank has since been bought by Banco Popular de Puerto Rico and others. Prior to moving to Puerto Rico, Spagnoletti had worked in South Carolina, Indiana and Pennsylvania.
The suspects facing murder charges were identified as Rivera, Luis Carmona, Yadiel Serrano and Alex Burgos. Charged with aiding and abetting a murder were Alan Lugo and Fabiany Almestica. It was not immediately clear if the suspects had attorneys. Authorities said the suspects are members of an organization responsible for at least two other killings.
Rodriguez declined to provide more details including the amount of the contract, saying it was part of the evidence that would be revealed at trial. However, she said the owner of the cleaning company also served as head of a Santeria group that the alleged drug traffickers relied on to protect their organization. She said the suspects would wear amulets and conduct religious ceremonies before committing crimes.
The FBI investigated the case because it has jurisdiction over drug trafficking and firearms offenses. Rodriguez added that the investigation is ongoing.
“We believe there are other people that might be involved, and we are going after them,” she said.
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