José Figueroa Sancha is a former

superintendent Superintendent may refer to: *Superintendent (police), Superintendent of Police (SP), or Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), a police rank *Prison warden or Superintendent, a prison administrator *Superintendent (ecclesiastical), a church exec ...

of the

Puerto Rico Police Department The Puerto Rico Police Department ( es, Policía de Puerto Rico), officially the Puerto Rico Police Bureau, is a law enforcement agency with jurisdiction over the entire Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. It is a division of the Puerto Rico Department ...

and former deputy director of the

Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, ...

in Puerto Rico. After being appointed by

governor of Puerto Rico The governor of Puerto Rico ( es, gobernador de Puerto Rico) is the head of government of the Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and commander-in-chief of the Puerto Rico National Guard. The governor has a duty ...

Luis Fortuño Luis Guillermo Fortuño Burset (born 31 October 1960) is a Puerto Rican politician who served as the governor of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States, from 2009 to 2013. Fortuño served as the first secretary of econom ...

as superintendent in 2008, he resigned in 2011 amidst criticisms in the middle of a crime wave in the island.

Career with the FBI

As deputy director of the

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and its principal Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement age ...

in Puerto Rico, Figueroa Sancha was one of the people in charge of the operative where

Filiberto Ojeda Ríos Filiberto Ojeda Ríos (April 26, 1933 September 23, 2005) was a Puerto Rican independence activist and militant who cofounded the Boricua Popular Army, also known as ''Los Macheteros,'' and its predecessor, the Fuerzas Armadas de Liberación ...

was killed in September 2005. He was also the agent in charge of an operative at an apartment building in

Río Piedras Rio or Río is the Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, and Maltese word for "river". When spoken on its own, the word often means Rio de Janeiro, a major city in Brazil. Rio or Río may also refer to: Geography Brazil * Rio de Janeiro * Rio do Sul, a ...

where agents pushed and shoved members of the press, spraying them with

pepper spray Pepper spray, oleoresin capsicum spray, OC spray, capsaicin spray, or capsicum spray is a lachrymatory agent (a compound that irritates the eyes to cause a burning sensation, pain, and temporary blindness) used in policing, riot control, cr ...

. The incident caused a lot of commotion amongst the press community and the Puerto Rico Press Association and the

Overseas Press Club The Overseas Press Club of America (OPC) was founded in 1939 in New York City by a group of foreign correspondents. The wire service reporter Carol Weld was a founding member, as was the war correspondent Peggy Hull. The club seeks to maintain ...

sued the FBI.

Career as superintendent

In November 2009, Puerto Rico Governor-elect

named Figueroa Sancha as superintendent of the

, and he was confirmed by the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

in January. During 2010, Figueroa Sancha dealt with numerous riots and incidents involving students of the

University of Puerto Rico The University of Puerto Rico ( es, Universidad de Puerto Rico, UPR) is the main public university system in the U.S. Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. It is a government-owned corporation with 11 campuses and approximately 58,000 students and 5,3 ...

and members of the police. These were as a result of a student's strike against new policies from the university administration and the government. In 2011, the rate of murders in Puerto Rico increased rapidly, which led many sectors to ask for Figueroa Sancha's resignation. Figueroa Sancha officially resigned on July 2, 2011, after less than three years in his position, after criticism for his work and the lack of positive results under his command. Allegedly, the governor asked him to resign, but this was denied by the government. Puerto Rico recorded its second-worst year for killings under his watch in 2010, while 2011 is currently the worst in the history of the island.

Political aspirations

After his resignation, Figueroa Sancha admitted that he had been approached by leaders of the PNP,

Thomas Rivera Schatz Thomas Rivera Schatz (born June 10, 1966) is a Puerto Rican politician, legal advisor, attorney, and former prosecutor, who was the fourteenth and sixteenth President of the Senate of Puerto Rico. He is affiliated with New Progressive Party of ...

and

Héctor O'Neill Héctor O'Neill García (born June 20, 1945) is a Puerto Rican politician. He was mayor of his hometown of Guaynabo. O'Neill is affiliated with the New Progressive Party (PNP) and has also served as a member of the Senate of Puerto Rico. Early ...

, for a possible aspiration to the

Senate of Puerto Rico The Senate of Puerto Rico ( es, Senado de Puerto Rico) is the upper house of the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico, the territorial legislature of Puerto Rico. The Senate, together with the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico, control t ...

. However,

Jorge Santini Jorge Santini Padilla (born March 11, 1960) is a Puerto Rican politician who previously served as the mayor of San Juan. State Service In 1975, Santini became a member of the United States Marines Air Cadets Corps. At present, he is Lieuten ...

, mayor of San Juan, didn't support him. Two days later, Figueroa Sancha announced that he wouldn't run for the Senate and would instead dedicate his time to a private security company he had started.Figueroa Sancha desiste aspirar al Senado
on ''

El Vocero ''El Vocero de Puerto Rico'' is a Puerto Rican free newspaper that is published in San Juan. Published since 1974, ''El Vocero'' was at first the third of the four largest Puerto Rico newspapers, trailing '' El Mundo'' and '' El Nuevo Día'' and ...

''; Méndez, Milly (October 26, 2011)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Figueroa Sancha, Jose Living people Federal Bureau of Investigation agents Superintendents of the Puerto Rico Police Members of the 15th Cabinet of Puerto Rico Year of birth missing (living people)