Overview
- The White House confirmed full, unconditional pardons for Wanda Vázquez Garced, banker Julio Martín Herrera-Velutini and ex-FBI agent Mark Rossini, ending the federal case and canceling upcoming sentencings.
- NBC News reported the pardon document lists the 2022 indictment docket but omits the 2025 plea case; officials say an additional document will be signed out of caution to ensure coverage.
- Prosecutors in 2022 alleged a quid pro quo to replace Puerto Rico’s banking regulator while Herrera’s bank was under examination; the trio pleaded guilty in August 2025 to a misdemeanor campaign-finance offense.
- Federal prosecutors had sought a one-year sentence for Vázquez, and the judge previously criticized the late shift from felony bribery and fraud charges to misdemeanors as a “slap on the wrist.”
- Puerto Rico’s resident commissioner condemned the pardon, while the White House called the case politically motivated and pointed to the probe’s timing; reporting also highlights DOJ public-integrity restructuring and large donations by Herrera’s daughter to a pro-Trump super PAC.