Ex-schools official ends public life

 BY LUISA YANEZ

 Former Miami-Dade School Board member Demetrio Pérez Jr. stood in front of a federal judge Thursday and pleaded guilty to defrauding a government rent-subsidy program of as much as $20,000.

 Pérez, 56, was scheduled for trial next month on 21 counts of mail fraud and making false statements. Instead, he struck a plea deal with prosecutors that would spare him jail time, but would keep him at home wearing a monitoring bracelet for four to 10 months.

 U.S. District Judge Ursula Ungaro-Benages has final say on the plea agreement. If she accepts it, she will decide on Pérez's punishment.

 ``Do I wish he could get jail time? Yes,'' said U.S. Attorney Guy Lewis. ``Unfortunately, if you're a drug dealer, you go to jail for a long time. But if you steal from poor people, the federal sentencing guidelines are not as harsh.''

 At the midday hearing, Ungaro-Benages detailed for Pérez what his plea entailed:

 "Do you understand that with a guilty plea you give up your right to appeal, vote or hold public office?'' Ungaro-Benages asked.

 "Yes,'' said Pérez, a perennial Miami political figure who was first elected to the city commission in 1981 and to the school board in 1996.

 On the courthouse steps, Pérez, flanked by family and friends, was mum. His attorney, Jeffrey S. Weiner, said his client is repentant.

 "This is a very difficult day for Demetrio Pérez Jr.'' Weiner said. ``He's been a gentleman and admitted his guilt. He's made some mistakes. He accepts responsibility and is trying to move on.''

 Pérez is a millionaire land owner and proprietor of a private school chain, the Lincoln-Martí Schools.

 During his school board years, Pérez was also instrumental in bringing student uniforms to Miami-Dade schools. .

 With his change to a guilty plea, Pérez joins a long list of public figures who ran afoul of the law, including former Miami-Dade Commissioners Pedro Reboredo and James Burke.

 The judge has until the Dec. 7 sentencing date to decide whether she will accept the plea deal. In addition to up to 10 months of house arrest, Pérez must finish paying more than $210,000 in restitution to tenant Migdalia Quintana. He must also pay $12,000 in investigative expenses incurred by Miami-Dade police, which worked with the FBI and U.S. attorney's office on the case.

 Federal prosecutors said that as the landlord to low-income Section 8 tenants living in one of his Little Havana properties, Pérez began overcharging them in 1992.

 The fraud netted him "between $10,000 and $20,000'' said Assistant U.S. Attorney Angel Cortiñas.

 Quintana sued him in civil court and won a $211,395 judgment. That case mushroomed into the criminal investigation.

 Under the subsidy program, Quintana, 56, was supposed to pay only $28 of the $450-a-month rent on her apartment at 2320 SW Ninth St.

 Pérez was paid the $422 balance with federal rent-subsidy monies.

 But Pérez charged Quintana between $250 and $350 more a month and then threw her out in 1997 when she balked at the extra charges. He also overbilled another tenant, Maria Cabrero, 62.

 Pérez will remain free on bond until sentencing.

                                    © 2001