Engineer charged in Hidalgo County corruption case scheduled for trial in February

McALLEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — An engineer charged in a major Hidalgo County corruption case may head to trial in February.

During a hearing on Tuesday morning, U.S. District Judge Micaela Alvarez scheduled Mariano Garcia, 52, of Mission for jury selection on Feb. 10.

“We’re looking forward to our day in court,” said attorney Heriberto “Eddie” Medrano of Harlingen, who represents Garcia.

Prosecutors accused Garcia of paying nearly $250,000 to Andres “Andy” Morales, a major player in western Hidalgo County politics. The money was intended to “influence and reward” Agua SUD General Manager J.E. “Eddie” Saenz for giving Garcia a government contract.

When jurors hear the evidence, Medrano said he believes they’ll find Garcia not guilty.

The federal courthouse in McAllen. (Photo by Mark Munoz / CBS 4 News)

The case against Garcia is part of a federal investigation that focused on Performance Services Inc., a company based in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Performance Services Inc. convinced the La Joya Independent School District, the Agua Special Utility District and the city of Mission to borrow millions for solar panels, LED lights and new water meters, among other projects.

La Joya ISD and Agua SUD hired Garcia, a local engineer, to supervise Performance Services Inc.

Agua SUD spent about $11.5 million on the Performance Services Inc. project, according to documents released under the Texas Public Information Act, and paid about $346,000 to M. Garcia Engineering.

Garcia is charged with giving nearly $250,000 to RGV Redlight LLC, a company Morales owned.

“Defendant is charged with a single count of bribery under 18 USC 666(a)(2), alleging he agreed to pay money to a third party entity (Andres Morales — RGV Redlight), in order to influence a government official (Eddie Saenz — General Manager of Agua SUD special utility district) to obtain a contract from Agua SUD to serve as it’s owner’s representative — overseeing a multi-million dollar energy savings project involving PSI (Performance Services, Inc.),” according to a motion filed by Garcia’s attorney.

Morales pleaded guilty to a federal conspiracy charge in 2022.

As part of his plea, Morales admitted that he accepted more than $1.1 million during the Performance Services Inc. conspiracy and passed along more than $373,000 to other people, including a “high ranking administrator for Agua SUD.”

Performance Services Inc. cooperated with the investigation, according to statements released by the company, and denied any wrongdoing. Saenz, who left Agua SUD in 2021, was never charged with any crime.

The FBI arrested Garcia in 2022. He pleaded not guilty.

If convicted, Garcia faces a maximum of 10 years in federal prison.