Frank Rodriguez, a former senior policy advisor to an Austin city official, has found himself sentenced to federal probation for engaging in a conspiracy that involved misapplying federal funds and falsifying records. According to documents from the court, Rodriguez, at the age of 73, engaged in deceitful undertakings that have now merited a three-year probation and an order to repay $21,375 in ill-gotten "consulting fees."
Originating from a falsehood in 2015, Rodriguez fabricated information on a federal cooperative agreement application, securing funds from the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services for a nonprofit he established. Despite his full-time commitment to the city, he claimed he would equally commit full-time efforts on the federal project, extracting nearly $190,000 from the government for purported Affordable Care Act enrollment services. Following this, Rodriguez, without disclosing to the City of Austin, he entered a "consulting agreement" with the nonprofit where Rodriguez received 10% of these federal grants, as mentioned by Western District of Texas.
The terms of prosecution come after a deeper unraveling of Rodriguez's misdeeds. As a public servant, his regular business included advocating for the nonprofit's city business while he shared confidential city information and undermined its competition for city funds. When the City of Austin's auditor launched an ethics probe into Rodriguez's dealings, the former advisor falsely portrayed his nonprofit relationship in correspondence, aiming to paint his financial gains as innocuous reimbursements for pre-employment achievements.
This narrative of deceit resulted in Rodriguez misleading the city's ethics commission, testifying "After the city auditor for the City of Austin began investigating Rodriguez for potential violations of the city’s ethics code, Rodriguez caused the nonprofit to send a letter to the city auditor that falsely described his relationship with the organization. He also falsely testified under oath at a city ethics commission hearing that the money he had received from the nonprofit was reimbursement for work accomplished prior to becoming a city employee and that he had never provided the nonprofit with preferential treatment," as reported in a statement released by U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza. The intricate web Rodriguez wove was untangled by the investigative efforts of the FBI and the Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Inspector General, leading to the courtroom where accountability awaited him.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Gabriel Cohen, Keith Henneke, and Alan Buie, who prosecuted the case, have now brought to a close at least one chapter of this tale of misused public trust.
