By Joe Malinconico, Paterson Press
PATERSON — City Council President Alex Mendez faces a new indictment on voter fraud charges in a case that has dragged on for almost five years involving an all vote-by-mail election that took place at the beginning of the COVID pandemic in 2020.
Mendez’s wife, Yohanny, and two of his campaign workers, Omar Ledesma and Iris Rigo, also are accused of election crimes under the indictment announced Wednesday morning by New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin.
The accused allegedly collected mail-in ballots completed by voters, brought them to Mendez campaign headquarters, destroyed the ballots that did not contain votes for Mendez in Paterson’s 3rd Ward council race, and replaced them with bogus ballots for Mendez.
The Mendez campaign allegedly obtained the replacement ballots by stealing blank ballots from mailboxes in neighborhoods with large numbers of supporters for Mendez’s main opponent, 20-year Councilman William McKoy.
“As alleged, this case is not simply about a city council seat,” said Platkin. “The people’s right to vote and to have their voices heard was subverted by what we allege to be an unlawful conspiracy. This was unfair to the voters of Paterson. It was, as the grand jury charged, fraud and theft.”
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