TEHRAN, Jul 24 - Puerto Rican officials on Tuesday executed search warrants for the mobile phones of Governor Ricardo Rosselló and his top associates amid scandals that have provoked 10 days of protests demanding his resignation and took a toll on tourism.
TEHRAN, Young Journalists Club (YJC) - The sometimes-violent demonstrations, which drew an estimated 500,000 people to the streets of San Juan on Monday, are the latest crisis to rock the bankrupt island as it struggles to recover from a hurricane two years ago that killed some 3,000 people.
The publication on July 13 of chat messages in which Rosselló and aides used profane language to describe female politicians and openly-gay Puerto Ricans such as Ricky Martin unleashed simmering resentment over his handling of 2017’s hurricane Maria, alleged corruption in his administration and the island’s bankruptcy process.
Puerto Rico’s Justice Department last Wednesday requested the phones of Rosselló and his aides as part of an investigation into the chat scandal, nicknamed “Rickyleaks.”
The court-ordered search warrants issued in San Juan on Tuesday targeted Rosselló as well as the phones of 11 associates involved in the chat, said Mariana Cobian, spokeswoman for the Puerto Rico Justice Department.
“A court authorized yesterday search warrants that are being executed today,” Cobian said in a statement.
Since then, only Chief of Staff Ricardo Llerandi has said publicly he handed over his phone. Llerandi gave his resignation on Tuesday, saying he had received threats and he needed to put his family’s well-being first.
He was the latest in a string of government officials to resign over the chat scandal.
Source: Reuters
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