Dannenbaum absolved of port bridge liability

The state through District Attorney Armando Villalobos will not seek to recoup any more funds - besides the $1 million secured in April - from Dannenbaum Engineering Corp that were improperly paid on the failed Brownsville Navigation District bridge project, an agreement between both states. 

The settlement agreement dated April 21 between Villalobos on the state's behalf and DEC Chairman James D. Dannenbaum also contains DEC's claim that Mexican subconsultants "misled" the firm. 

Villalobos released the agreement Monday to The Brownsville Herald under direction from Texas Attorney Greg Abbott. 

The district attorney's office had sought to keep the agreement confidential. The Herald on April 28 asked his office for a copy of documents in which his office, state, or the court cleared Dannenbaum, the firm and its principals of wrongdoing regarding the project.

 This followed Villalobos' announcement days earlier of a $1 million seizure from DEC, finding it was either stolen or misapplied from BND. The funds reportedly were part of the "success fees" paid to subcontractors in Mexico via DEC. 

The seizure followed a special grand jury investigation on $21.4 million spent toward the bridge, which was never built. A sealed indictment charging theft was returned in the case. 

Most of the money spent, $15.4 million, went to DEC, which forwarded roughly $9 million to subconsultants. 

BND Special Counsel Charles Willette's inquiry in 2004 found that DEC forwarded roughly $9.2 million to Homeframes de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Comercializadora Binacional America S.A. de C.V. (COBINA) and Sistemas Ejecutivos de Seguridad Privada S.A. de C.V. 

Villalobos' and DEC's agreement notes that the state claims that money paid and intended to be paid to COBINA, Homeframes and Sistemas is "contraband." 

"DEC denies that those payments from the project are contraband of any kind and denies that it was involved in any kind of criminal activity," the agreement states. 

The agreement also notes that DEC cooperated fully in the investigation. 

"By DEC's signature on this agreement and upon the authority of the State of Texas, there shall be no additional civil actions brought by the Cameron County District Attorney's Office against DEC, including, but not limited to James D. Dannenbaum, Louis H. Hones Jr., ..." the agreement states. 

In past interviews, Dannenbaum and Jones said they were cleared of criminal wrongdoing. 

Besides the settlement on the civil forfeiture action, Villalobos obviously submitted another document for Abbott's review and the latter found that this could not be released because it relates to a pending criminal investigation. 

Villalobos was not available Monday to comment on this.