Villagomez takes witness stand

House Vice Speaker Timothy Villagomez took the witness stand yesterday, as Pedro Babauta began presenting his witnesses in a case that accuses him of tampering with the Commonwealth Utilities Corp.’s water sampling results to hide the true microbiological content of its drinking water.

Before Babauta began presenting defense evidence, his lawyer, G. Anthony Long, asked the U.S. District Court Chief Judge Alex R. Munson to enter a judgment of acquittal on the conspiracy and false documents charges. Munson denied Long’s requests.

Yesterday, the judge wanted the defense panel to present its last witness—CUC public information officer Pamela Mathis—but she was not available, Long said. After Long’s failed attempts to have Mathis come to court yesterday noon, the judge set the presentation of Mathis’ testimony this morning.

Villagomez, a long-time CUC executive director before he entered politics, said the utility firm’s relationship with the Division of Environmental Quality was “at times amicable, at times non-cordial.”

He said that, while DEQ was tasked to oversee that CUC complies with regulations, there was jealousy on the DEQ’s part. “CUC lab received certification of compliance from EPA before DEQ’s lab received certification.”

Babauta was the former laboratory manager of CUC.

Villagomez also said that he had signed CUC’s monthly reports on its water sampling tests. He said he had no suspicion that there was any problem with the reports. He also said that CUC’s water quality has always been out of compliance with EPA’s regulations. “CUC doesn’t provide potable water.”

During cross examination by federal prosecutor Timothy Moran, Villagomez conceded that CUC’s water is being used for showering, bathing, washing dishes, as well washing children and infants.

Villagomez said that no one told him that he was being made to sign inaccurate reports. He said he wouldn’t sign the reports if he knew that they were inaccurate.

Before the defense began presenting its evidence, the prosecution presented EPA’s Derek Chambers and special agent Gary Guerra as witnesses.

Guerra testified that he conducted an investigation on the tampering of water sampling results after the DEQ contacted EPA about CUC’s falsified data. Guerra disclosed that he discreetly interviewed some CUC lab employees, including laboratory technician Mariano Iglecias.

When the prosecution rested its case, Long asked the court to enter a judgment of acquittal in favor of Babauta regarding the conspiracy charge. He said the indictment identified no co-conspirator. Apparently, Long said Iglecias was the co-conspirator, but he pointed out that there could be no conspiracy because the technician never voluntarily agreed but was only compelled regarding the alleged falsification of water sampling reports.

The prosecutor said Iglecias’ signing of the falsified reports resulted in fraud against the EPA. The judge denied Long’s request, citing Iglecias’ participation in the alleged acts of tampering.

Long then asked a judgment of acquittal on the four counts of false documents, saying that the government has no written sampling plan. The judge also denied the request.

Babauta, the husband of incumbent CUC executive director Lorraine Babauta, faces criminal charges for allegedly tampering with drinking water sampling results to conceal the microbiological content in the firm’s water supply.

The laboratory manager retired from the government sometime in 2003 after the DEQ—the EPA’s local arm—slapped the CUC with citations over various violations of drinking water regulations, including tampering of water sampling results.

An indictment filed against Babauta in federal court last year alleged that the former laboratory manager conspired with other persons to conceal the true microbiological content of CUC’s public water system on different occasions over a four-year period.