Jury returns guilty verdict in corruption trial

McALLEN, Texas - A 50-year-old Mission resident has been convicted of conspiracy to commit money laundering, violating the Travel Act, and witness tampering.

The jury deliberated for approximately three hours before convicting Veronica Inez O'Cana following a three-day trial.

O'Cana had conspired with others to launder approximately $30,000 in funds for the benefit of a member of the Mission Consolidated Independent School District Board in return for favorable consideration and official actions.

The jury heard that co-conspirators attempted to disguise or conceal the payments made to influence official actions through the use of third parties, fraudulent memo lines, and cash. The jury learned that payments were made in attempts to influence a series of actions that would lead to the awarding of an energy savings contract to Performance Services Inc. An employee of that company was also a conspirator in the scheme.

Testimony revealed the ultimate contract was expected to be worth $20-25 million. However, although an initial assessment contract was awarded and an investment grade audit contract signed, the final contract was never approved.

Testimony revealed O'Cana obtained $24,000 during the scheme. Text messages and recordings also showed that she had received the payments.

Law enforcement uncovered the scheme in 2022 and subsequently served O'Cana with a federal grand jury subpoena. She was then recorded on WhatsApp calls with a co-conspirator discussing the need to have the same story regarding the reason for the payments.

The defense attempted to convince the jury there was no proof O'Cana sent the messages and that the witnesses were not credible. They did not believe those claims and found her guilty as charged.

U.S. District Judge Drew B. Tipton presided over the trial and set sentencing for Oct. 7. At that time, O'Cana faces up to 20 years for the conspiracy to commit money laundering and witness tampering violations and a maximum of five years for the Travel Act violation.

O'Cana was permitted to remain on bond pending that hearing.

FBI conducted the investigation with assistance from McAllen Police Department and Texas Department of Insurance. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Roberto Lopez Jr., Ryan Sim, and Alexa Parcell prosecuted the case.