BROWNSVILLE — According to an April 2017 audit report, District Attorney Luis V. Saenz owed $4,977.97 in fuel costs to Cameron County for alleged misuse of a fuel card.
Saenz is permitted an annual auto allowance of $5,400, according to a letter addressed to Saenz by County Auditor Martha Galarza.
He has also been given a vehicle throughout the years for out-of-county travel. Those vehicles were a 2013 Chevrolet, a 2014 Equinox, and more recently a 2017 Chevrolet.
The fuel card is only for out-of-county travel, but in the letter, Galarza said Saenz was using it for county-wide travel in addition to receiving an auto allowance.
“While the fuel costs for the vehicles you have used is being charged to your Drug Forfeiture Funds, the fact that you are also receiving an auto allowance for the same purpose is not permissible per county policy and state forfeiture guidelines,” Galarza wrote.
In the letter, Galarza recounts a conversation she had with the district attorney in May 2015 when the issue first surfaced during one of his reviews.
“I recall this discussion where the intent of the auto allowance was discussed at length. We discussed the fact that you were using a county vehicle whereby the county was paying for the fuel and receiving an auto allowance at the same time,” Galarza wrote.
“After our conversation our records indicate usage of your fuel card ceased for the months of June 2015 through November 2016.”
In December 2016 through April 2017, usage of the fuel card started again.
“My staff was using that card for in-county business,” Saenz said. “In April, when the issue came to light, I asked the county to discontinue the fuel card.”
Out-of-county travel is not uncommon for the DA’s Office, but not frequent. The vehicle with the fuel card would sometimes be used to attend out of town trainings, or to attend High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas programs in San Antonio. It was also used in Corpus Christi for Tony Yzaguirre’s trial, Saenz said.
In the expense report Galarza attached to the letter, from July 2013 to September 2013, in-county travel expenses totaled $880.14. Out-of-county travel, on the other hand, reached $214.01.
From October 2013 to May 2014, total in-county travel expenses totaled $1,811.06. The out-of-county expense was $65.60.
The total out-of-county expense was $915.91 from July 2013 to February 2017.
