Wednesday, November 26, 2014

Reuters: Puerto Rico's public transit system will shut down on Monday if lawmakers do not increase a tax on oil | Comunidad de la American rinde tributo al sargento Ortiz

Reuters: World News
Puerto Rico threatened with transit shutdown in political spat
Shared by 1 person
Wed Nov 26, 2014 8:01pm EST

(Reuters) - Puerto Rico's public transit system will shut down on Monday if lawmakers do not increase a tax on oil, the U.S. commonwealth's Government Development Bank said, accusing politicians of taking an "irresponsible" gamble on the island's economy.
The possible shutdown of Puerto Rico's buses and commuter train services, affecting 75,000 commuters, would be a major escalation of the island's debt crisis and would threaten its fragile economy.
It would come as a further blow to residents already facing budget cuts and paying among the highest electricity costs in the United States.
The move is scheduled to come when citizens return from their Thanksgiving break and ramps up the pressure on politicians to resolve their wrangling over the tax hike, which was to back a loan for its highways authority.
"It is irresponsible to continue playing with (Puerto Rico's) economic and fiscal stability," the GDB said in a statement. "The immediate consequences of these actions are already evident: public employees out of work and citizens on foot in the height of the holiday season."
Puerto Rico is struggling with a debt load of more than $70 billion and an economy that has been in or near recession for eight years. The latest data showed economic activity continued to slide last month and is the lowest in 20 years.
Governor Alejandro Garcia Padilla has been unable to convince enough members of his party to back a 68 percent increase to a tax on crude oil, which was expected to be passed last week. He convened a special session of the legislature on Monday, but lawmakers called a recess until Dec. 1.
The governor, whose popularity is sinking in the polls ahead of elections in 2016, appears to be just one vote short despite attempts this week to rally lawmakers. Some of them want to wait to pass the measure with a package of tax reforms expected in early 2015 to lessen the political hit from unpopular tax measures.
Padilla has been losing support after delivering an austerity budget that cut spending by $1.4 billion.
With opposition lawmakers voting against the unpopular tax measure, the bill needs support from 26 of the 28 members of the Popular Democratic Party members in the House. At least three members remain opposed, with a fourth vowing to abstain, according to local news reports.
TRANSIT THREATENED
While the transit links only serve a small proportion of Puerto Rico's 3.6 million population, the closure would be a indictment of the government's ability to run basic services.
The shutdown would immediately affect rail and bus services, but boats could be threatened in the future.
"The Metropolitan Bus Authority will stop Dec. 1 because there is no money to pay salaries on Dec. 15. That's the same situation with the Tren Urbano. The Maritime Transportation Authority has a few more months. We don't have money for payroll," Padilla said at a press conference on Monday. Tren Urbano is a commuter train service.
The island's Highways and Transportation Authority does not have sufficient income or liquidity to meet its payroll obligations for December, the bank said in a statement, adding that meant public transport services will close on Monday.
Puerto Rico has delayed a bond sale of up to $2.9 billion until early 2015 which it had been aiming to complete this year using the proceeds of the oil tax increase. The government planned to increase its tax on crude oil to $15.50 per barrel from $6.25 to raise $178 million a year to back the bonds.
Without proceeds from the bond sale, the island could also lack the liquidity to meet government emergencies in 2015, the GDB said. It has contingency plans to postpone loans for public works and stop disbursement of municipal and government loans, it said.
Ratings agency Moody's Investors Service said the island faces financial trouble next year if it is unable to complete the transaction.
(Reporting by Edward Krudy in New York; Editing by Megan DaviesChris Reese and Lisa Shumaker



  1. Comunidad de la American rinde tributo al sargento Ortiz

    El Nuevo Dia.com-7 hours agoShare
    Comunidad de la American rinde tributo al sargento Ortiz ... a quien a diario les saludaba al llegar al plantel: el sargento Miguel Ortiz Díaz
    1. Dan último adiós a familia asesinada en Guaynabo

      El Nuevo Dia.com-7 hours agoShare
      ... despidieron del sargento Miguel Ortiz, su esposa Carmita Uceda y el mayor de ... El cortejo fúnebre con los restos de Ortiz Díaz y su hijo Michael Ortiz Uceda, ...
    2. Oficina de Prensa de Justicia aclara error en vista por matanza familiar

      Primera Hora-4 hours ago
      Las víctimas de la matanza fueron identificadas por la Policía como el militar retirado Miguel Ortiz Díaz, de 66 años; su esposa, Carmita Uceda Ciriaco, de 45 ...
      Despiden a dos víctimas de masacre en Guaynabo
      International-Diario Metro de Puerto Rico-9 hours ago
      Explore in depth (22 more articles)
    3. Cremarán a peruana víctima de matanza en Guaynabo

      El Nuevo Dia.com-8 hours ago
      ... será cremada hoy, día en que también se dará cristiana sepultura a su hija Carmita Uceda, de 45 años; a su yerno el ex sargento militar Miguel Ortiz Díaz, de ...
    4. Mayra López Mulero defenderá a acusado de matanza en Guaynabo

      El Nuevo Dia.com-5 hours ago
      En la casa fueron asesinados el sargento retirado Miguel Ortiz Díaz, su esposa Carmita Uceda Ciriaco y su suegra Clementina Ciriaco, mientras que en el ...
    5. Llegan desde Perú a despedir a su familia asesinada en Guaynabo

      El Nuevo Dia.com-19 hours ago
      Los hermanos Rosario, Milagros y Miguel Uceda arribaron ayer a Puerto Rico, ... la vida de su padre Miguel Ortiz Díaz; su madre Carmita; su hermano Michael, ...

Monday, November 24, 2014

Mike Nova comments on the previous posts:This "murder most foul" has to be investigated in utmost depth and very thoroughly.

Mike Nova comments on the previous posts: 
This "murder most foul" has to be investigated in utmost depth and very thoroughly. Even in Puerto Rico, people do not usually kill for reason of eviction or threat of eviction. The picture of this crime is more consistent with the demonstrative, execution type of killing. The immediate culprits are probably just hired: paid or induced hands. The central part of this crime seems to be the military background of its target. The Peru connection is also, most likely just a convenient cover aimed to mislead and deflect attention from the ultimate customers who might have ordered this murder for hire, as it appears to be. 
Another telling point is that Reuters preferred not to reveal the name of its correspondent in San Juan, the author of this article. If it is so, it tells us volumes in one line (or its absence) about the security situation on the Island, contrary to the official advertising about "Un Puerto Rico más seguro". My own, VHaSPO, can be deduced. 
I think that this is another sign of "Puerto Rico Syndrome", which demands very close Federal attention, in addition to what is, undoubtedly and appreciably, already focused on it. I wish that we will eventually get to the bottom of this despicable crime and will eventually take all the necessary corrective actions. Like many of us, I mourn the victims. I wish I would have a sergeant as good as him, if I were to serve. 

Sunday, November 23, 2014

"Murder most foul": Police In Puerto Rico Investigate Murder Of Military Family | What's the Matter With Puerto Rico?


Published on Nov 20, 2014
Two men have been arrested and charged with first degree murder in the killings of a retired U.S. army sergeant and three of his family members in Puerto Rico.

Sixty-seven year old Miguel Ortiz Diaz, his wife and his mother-in-law were fatally shot at their home in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico late Monday, Fox News Latino reported.

The assailants kidnapped Ortiz’s two sons after the shooting and took them to a field in Guaraguao neighborhood where the elder son was shot to death, El Comercio reported.

The assailants reportedly ran out of bullets when they tried to kill Ortiz’s younger son. So they stabbed him and threw him over a bridge, according to El Comercio. Miraculously, the 13-year-old boy survived the attack and later sought help.

Police said the murders were carried out by people who were renting a house from Ortiz and were facing eviction after they failed to pay rent, Fox News Latino reported.

Police In Puerto Rico Investigate Murder Of Military Family



Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/r-police-in-puerto-rico-investigate-murder-of-military-family-2014-11#ixzz3JwZsSSvX


SAN JUAN (Reuters) - Police in Puerto Rico are investigating the execution-style murders of a retired U.S. Army officer and three members of his family during a Monday night attack on their gated suburban community home, officials said.
A suspect was in custody and police said the killings may have been in reprisal for an attempt to evict tenants from a rental home the family owned.
Police identified the victims as Miguel Ortiz Díaz, 66, his wife Carmita Uceda Ciriaco, 45, his mother-in-law Clementina Ciriaco López, and his 15-year-old son Miguel Ortiz Uceda.
Another 13-year-boy, also a son of the victims, survived and is under police protection and receiving medical care, Police Superintendent Jose Caldero said in a radio interview.
The murders were the seventh multiple killing in Puerto Rico this year, police said.
The attack took place in the gated Frailes community of Guaynabo, just west of San Juan.
The suspect in custody was arrested early Tuesday in Bayamon, where Ortiz Diaz’s rental house is located, according to police.
Caldero described the crime scene as “macabre,” saying Ortiz Diaz, who retired from the U.S. Army as a sergeant first class, was gagged and shot to death against a sofa in the living room, while the two women were made to kneel down nearby and then shot.
Police believe the suspects attempted to kill the minors as well, but kidnapped them when their weapons failed. Caldero told reporters that the older son was killed in transit and his body dumped by the side of a road.
The attackers apparently ran out of bullets when attempting to kill the 13-year-old boy, he said, so they beat him and then threw him off a bridge, leaving the boy for dead.
The boy survived, managing to alert a neighbor and then police about what had occurred.
(Reporting a Reuters correspondent in San Juan; Editing by Dan Grebler)
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/r-police-in-puerto-rico-investigate-murder-of-military-family-2014-11#ixzz3JwZRbSfa

2 Charged in Killing of 4 Relatives in Guaynabo

Two men have been charged with fi rst-degree
murder in the killings of a retired Army sergeant
and three other family members, police
said Thursday.
Christopher Sánchez Asencio and José Bosch
Mulero, both 27, also face nearly 40 other counts,
including aggravated kidnapping of a minor and
destruction of evidence.
They were being held on $8 million bond
each.
The victims include 67-year-old Miguel Ortiz
Díaz, his wife, a 15-year-old son and his motherin-law.
They were fatally shot late Monday at their
home in the upscale city of Guaynabo, southwest of
the capital of San Juan. Police said a 13-year-old son
survived after being stabbed and thrown off a bridge
in the neighboring municipality of Bayamón.
It is unclear whether the suspects have attorneys,
although Bosch spoke briefl y to reporters on
Wednesday after he was arrested.
“To the boy who survived, I am truly sorry for
what happened,” he said.
Police have said they believe Ortiz was killed
by people who were renting a house he owned and
were facing eviction because they had fallen behind
on the rent.
The 13-year-old boy remains hospitalized and
is expected to recover as government offi cials debate
who should obtain custody of him. His mother
and grandmother had Peruvian citizenship, and
family members in Peru have expressed interest in
bringing him to the South American country.
Isadora Hernández, a spokeswoman for Puerto
Rico’s Department of State, said in a phone interview
that two Puerto Ricans have off ered to pay for
the fl ights and hotel of the victims’ family members
who live in Peru.
Ortiz had been a professor for nearly 20 years
at Puerto Rico’s American Military Academy, where
his sons also were enrolled.
The murders were the seventh multiple killing
in Puerto Rico this year, police said.

http://www.sanjuanweeklypr.com/pdf/Nov-21-14/local.pdf

Ex-Army sergeant among 4 killed in Puerto Rico

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A retired Army sergeant and three members of his family including a teenage son have been fatally shot to death in the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico, police said Tuesday. The victims include 66-year-old Miguel Ortiz Diaz, his wife, their 15-year-old son and Ortiz's mother-in-law, police officer Maritza Ramos said.

Two jailed in Puerto Rico over killing of military family

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Two men were jailed in Puerto Rico on Wednesday on charges of killing a retired U.S. Army sergeant and three members of his family, as well as attempting to kill the victims' 13-year-old son by beating him and throwing him off a bridge. A Bayamon judge set the bail for Christopher Sanchez Asencio, 27, and Jose Bosch Mulero, 26, at $8 million after authorities charged each with first-degree murder in the attack at the victims' home on Monday night, police said.

Police In Puerto Rico Investigate Murder Of Military Family ...

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SAN JUAN (Reuters) - Police in Puerto Rico are investigating the execution-style murders of a retired U.S. Army officer and three members of his family during a Monday night attack on their gated suburban community home, ...

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By: Emmanuel Robles Rivera Visiting a hospital or seeking medical care in Puerto Rico could be risky. An act of faith, even, considering the mistakes and malpractice that occurs frequently in hospitals around the country.

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