EDINBURG — Texas Rangers arrested a third person in connection with an ongoing voter fraud investigation into last year’s Edinburg municipal election.
The third arrest came hours after two people were arrested Wednesday morning.
Texas Department of Public Safety spokesman Johnny Hernandez identified the third person in custody as Maria San Juanita Aleman, 35. Aleman faces a possible voter fraud charge, which is considered a second-degree felony.
The other two arrested earlier today were identified as Veronica Vela Saenz, 41, and Jose Antonio Vela, 27.
The arrests stem from an investigation by the Rangers, the Texas Attorney General’s office and the Hidalgo County District Attorney’s office.
Vela Saenz is accused of voting in the November 2017 Edinburg municipal election despite not living in the city. She was arraigned on one count of illegal voting, a second degree felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Precinct 2 Place 2 Justice of the Peace Jaime “Jerry” Munoz set her bond at $50,000.
Vela was arraigned on one count of making a false statement on a voter application, a Class B misdemeanor punishable by up to 180 days in jail. Munoz set his bond at $10,000.
Aleman will be magistrated Thursday, said District Attorney Ricardo Rodriguez.
“There’s a lot I want to say but obviously I just can’t right now because it’s still an ongoing investigation,” said Rodriguez, who added that “there may be more arrests coming.”
Rodriguez said his office has been investigating the Edinburg election for the past four to five months.
