Juan Carlos Cruz-Hernández was sentenced to 24 months in prison by United States District Court Judge Pedro A. Delgado on February 23, 2026, for his involvement in a bribery and wire fraud scheme that targeted the Puerto Rico Department of Transportation and Public Works (DTOP). In addition to the prison term, Cruz-Hernández received three years of supervised release and was ordered to pay $32,000 in restitution.
Cruz-Hernández admitted to negotiating and making bribe payments to several public employees at regional driver service centers (CESCO) in Caguas and Carolina, Puerto Rico. Over the course of the scheme, he paid approximately $66,000 to DTOP employees. These payments were made in exchange for official acts such as accessing DTOP-CESCO information, obtaining duplicate documentation, and removing driver and vehicle fines. The involved DTOP employees had access to sensitive information and could eliminate fines from records.
Three other defendants were charged alongside Cruz-Hernández following their indictment on July 17, 2024. They were arrested a day later. Two are scheduled for sentencing in March 2026 while one awaits trial. Cruz-Hernández pleaded guilty on May 6, 2025, to charges including conspiracy to commit bribery involving a program receiving federal funds, federal program bribery, conspiracy to commit wire fraud deprivation of honest services of a public official, and wire fraud deprivation of honest services.
U.S. Attorney W. Stephen Muldrow for the District of Puerto Rico announced the sentence together with Yariel Ramos, Acting Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations. “An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law,” said Muldrow.
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Marie Christine Amy from the Financial Fraud & Public Corruption Section.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Puerto Rico oversees criminal prosecutions and civil litigation as part of its mission to enforce federal laws across the region (official website). The office also supports public safety by handling cases such as civil rights violations (official website), offers resources for reporting crimes (official website), and addresses issues like public corruption (official website). Muldrow served as United States Attorney during this case (official website).
