A man who took $73,668 through contracts to build homes in Yauco and Guánica was sentenced Wednesday to eight years of house arrest and ordered to pay $147,336 in restitution, the Puerto Rico Department of Justice reported. Judge Zahira Torres Moro, of the Court of First Instance in Ponce, imposed the sentence on Antonio Luis Cruz Batista, who pleaded guilty to two counts of fraud in the execution of works and two counts of aggravated illegal appropriation.
According to the Prosecution’s investigation, Cruz Batista represented the company Modern Home’s Gallery, Inc., which promoted home construction services on Facebook. After clients hired the services, he asked them for money to start or advance the work, failed to complete the agreed construction, and kept the money received. One victim paid $34,165 to build a residence in Yauco that was left unfinished.
In the second case, a woman gave $39,503 for a home in Guánica that was never built. As part of the sentence, the court ordered restitution of double the money the victims handed over: $68,330 for the Yauco victim and $79,006 for the Guánica victim. The Department of Justice said Cruz Batista will be sent to prison if he fails to pay the ordered restitution.
The case was prosecuted by prosecutor María Teresa Carro Lahongrais, of the Economic Crimes Division, following an investigation by agent María Fabre, of the Property Division of the Criminal Investigations Corps in Yauco. Justice Secretary Lourdes Gómez Torres also said Cruz Batista faces other court proceedings in various jurisdictions for similar conduct.