The city of Palmview briefly suspended police chief Gilberto Zamora last month after an internal investigation found that he had bought several trucks from a dealer where his son works.
Palmview purchased three 2021 Chevrolet Silverado trucks from Mission’s Bert Ogden Chevrolet in August, according to documents released under the Texas Public Information Act.
His son was listed as a seller in the records. Whether his son received a commission on the $ 155,000 deal remains unclear.
“While I am not permitted to discuss details of personnel matters or specific internal matters related to any particular purchasing matter, I can only speak broadly about the importance of complying with state laws and local purchasing policies and procedures,” said City Manager Michael Leo in a statement. “Of course, these guidelines and procedures help us secure the purchasing process with taxpayers’ money – they ensure that the goods and services we procure encourage competition, that the process is fair and transparent, and that there are no personal interests in the procurement process, and that our taxpayers can hold our spending accountable. It is always important that employees adhere to these practices. “
Palmview suspended Zamora for three days without pay and placed him on probation for six months. However, Zamora denied any wrongdoing.
“He wants his suspension to be reversed,” said Edinburgh attorney Javier Peña, who represents Zamora. “He wants this to be removed from his file.”
The controversy began in August when the city council authorized the Palmview Police Department to purchase three new Chevrolet Silverados.
Mission’s Bert Ogden Chevrolet agreed to sell the trucks to Palmview for nearly $ 52,000 apiece, according to documents released under the Public Information Act. Palmview traded in three Ford F-150s, reducing the total cost to nearly $ 101,000.
The members of the city council unanimously approved the purchase on August 24th. Palmview wrote a check two days later.
City Manager Michael Leo did not know that the records listed Zamora’s son as a seller.
Leo found out on August 30th, according to an internal investigation into the city under the Public Relations Act. He asked Zamora about the purchase.
Zamora admitted that he had failed to follow the shopping procedures that the internal investigation found required the city to request offers from three vendors.
When asked if his son was the seller, Zamora denied this.
“No. It would be a conflict,” said Zamora, according to the internal investigation. “I’ve made sure that it is not on the paperwork.”
In the papers, however, his son was clearly listed as the seller.
Given this information, Zamora asked the city to contact “CP” – the person Zamora believed was actually the seller – to clear up the confusion.
“Legal advisor calls CP and dealer and confirms that ‘Gilbert Zamora, Jr.’ is actually the registered seller ”, according to the internal investigation, which“ CP ”identified only on the basis of his initials.
Peña said Zamora told Bert Ogden Chevrolet his son couldn’t be involved in the sale, but his son’s name landed on the papers anyway.
The Progress Times contacted Bert Ogden Chevrolet, but the dealer referred a reporter to the company’s marketing department who did not respond to a request for comment.
Palmview concluded that the deal created “a potential conflict of interest” and Zamora was punished.
The city also rolled back the deal at Bert Ogden Chevrolet and instead bought the trucks from Edinburgh’s Fiesta Chevrolet, saving the city about $ 18,000, according to internal investigations.
After the city suspended him, Zamora blamed Councilor Joel Garcia for the decision.
“Mr. Garcia tried to trump a scandal involving a dispute in a bar that the boss was not involved in. This attempt was unsuccessful,” according to a complaint Zamora filed in mid-September. “Mr. Garcia then tried to question the purchase of the three trucks that the city voted for and that the state approved. “
Zamora alleged that Garcia had interfered in the affairs of the police department.
“I think the bigger problem is, we have footage of him asking the chief to do all these illegal things,” said Peña. “We have SMS. We have recordings. We have everything.”
Garcia said he never asked Zamora to do anything indecent.
When people call him, Garcia says he will forward their concerns to Zamora and other city officials.
“As a citizen. Not as a councilor, ”said Garcia. “Because at the end of the day, the people of Palmview are our bosses.”
Garcia also asked why Zamora only complained after the city suspended him.
“I didn’t do anything wrong,” said Garcia.
Garcia accused Peña of fabricating false accusations.
“He knows there’s nothing there,” Garcia said. “But he wants to slander me.”
Peña said Zamora can prove anything alleged in the complaint, which is backed up by records and text messages.
“He shouldn’t be in public office with what we have,” said Peña.
Comments are closed.