Posted on 11/16/2007 11:49:33 AM PST by SwinneySwitch
CORPUS CHRISTI — A grand jury returned four felony indictments against Mauricio Celis on Friday, including perjury, falsely holding himself out as a lawyer and impersonating a public servant.
An arrest warrant will be issued after the indictments. Nueces County District Attorney Carlos Valdez said he expects Celis to turn himself into authorities. Valdez also said he has not ruled out the possibility of further investigation.
Celis’ attorney, Tony Canales, was out of town until late Friday afternoon and unavailable for immediate comment.
The four indictments include:
-- One count of aggravated perjury, a third-degree felony, for testifying in May in a Zapata County civil case that he graduated from Universidad Regiomontana in Monterrey, Mexico, with a degree in judicial sciences. The indictment alleges he never graduated from that school. Nueces County gained jurisdiction because the testimony was entered as an exhibit in a local civil case.
-- Seven counts of falsely holding himself out as a lawyer, a third-degree felony. Each count stems from separate incidents in which Celis was listed as an attorney. Celis’ business cards, letterhead and his firm’s Web site identified him as an attorney licensed in Mexico.
One business fax sheet stated he was licensed in Washington, D.C. and California. Celis also signed a settlement document as an attorney. He told Police Chief Bryan Smith he was licensed in Mexico, according to the indictment.
-- One count of impersonating a public servant, a third-degree felony, for flashing a Duval County sheriff’s badge as Corpus Christi police investigated why a nude woman fled from Celis’ Kings Crossing home.
-- One count of theft, a state jail felony, for taking money from a client of his law firm. The indictment does not specify the amount but says it was between $1,500 and $20,000. The client was Paloma Steele, who has sued Celis in Nueces County to recuperate a portion of her fees.
If the criminal charges are tried together and Celis is found guilty, he could face up to 10 years in prison plus fines. If the counts are tried separately, he could face 32 years plus fines. Each indictment carries up to $10,000 in fines.
Meanwhile, Celis, 36, is involved in at least three other civil suits: another in Nueces County from Frost National Bank for allegedly defaulting on a loan, one in Zapata County from lawyers disputing fees and one in Travis County from the Texas Attorney General’s Office.
Ping!
If you want on, or off this S. Texas/Mexico ping list, please FReepMail me.
One count of impersonating a public servant.
CELIS! Now that’s a great White Belgian Beer from Austin. Oh ... Nevermind.
Owner of a law firm that regularly refers high-dollar cases to the city's most powerful litigators, Celis developed a reputation as a generous player, handing out fat checks to Democratic candidates, hosting fundraisers and serving on the board of Catholic Charities of Corpus Christi.
Mauricio Celis with the law firm of CGT Law Group International does not have a law license in the state of Texas nor does he have a license to practice law anywhere in the world.
Why do Democrats attract this kind of person????? eeeks!!!
Texas US Senate Candidate Watts, Celis and the nude fleeing lady
Houston Chronicle ^ | Oct. 23, 2007, 10:25PM | Rick Casey
Posted on 10/24/2007 8:54:20 PM CDT by lqcincinnatus
“Gee, Wally it doesn’t say he is a rat. How can we believe he is?”
“Trust me Beav, trust me.”
“Thanks Wally. Wanna play catch?”
Realizing that it’s a Texas newspaper and story, but no mention whatsoever of the party affiliation in the story.
Heard he was also a big contributor to Cruz Bustamante (CA)and John Kerry (MA).
belated ping!
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