Sol Luis Fontanes Olivo (born October 13, 1949, in Barceloneta,

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

) is a Puerto Rican politician and former mayor of Barceloneta. He was one of the longest tenured mayors of the island, spending 26 years in office. He is currently incarcerated for charges of corruption.

Early years and studies

Fontanes was born on October 13, 1949, in

Barceloneta, Puerto Rico Barceloneta (, ) is a Barceloneta barrio-pueblo, town and Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality in Puerto Rico located in the north region, bordering the Atlantic Ocean, north of Florida, Puerto Rico, Florida (city and municipality in Puer ...

, to Félix Fontanes and María Olivo. He studied in his hometown, graduating from high school in 1967. Fontánes then studied at the

University of Puerto Rico The University of Puerto Rico (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Universidad de Puerto Rico;'' often shortened to UPR) is the main List of state and territorial universities in the United States, public university system in the Commonwealth (U.S. i ...

, receiving a

Bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

in 1972. He completed a

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

from the

Interamerican University of Puerto Rico The Inter American University of Puerto Rico (Spanish: ''Universidad Interamericana de Puerto Rico''; often abbreviated to ''UIPR'' or ''Inter'') is a private Christian university with its main campus in San Germán, Puerto Rico. It also has ...

in 1974.

Professional career

Fontanes worked as a teacher for several years. He also worked as Director of the Prevention Center of the Department of Anti-Addiction Services.

Political career

Fontanes became mayor of Barceloneta in 1986 after the death of Mayor Héctor Ruíz Martínez and was re-elected six times. For the 2008 general election, Fontanes received more than 70% of the votes, for one of the largest margins of victory that year.

Arrest

On February 15, 2012, Fontanes was arrested by the

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

and indicted on one charge of

extortion Extortion is the practice of obtaining benefit (e.g., money or goods) through coercion. In most jurisdictions it is likely to constitute a criminal offence. Robbery is the simplest and most common form of extortion, although making unfounded ...

. He resigned his office on March 1, 2012. In October 2012, he was sentenced to 10 years in prison. On January 24, 2013, Fontanes pled guilty and was sentenced to thirteen years in prison, to be served concurrently. Fontanes was incarcerated at FCI Petersburg Low Federal Jail in Virginia. His inmate number is 38753–069 with a release date of August 22, 2020 and is currently listed as being located at th
Miami Residential Reentry Management (RRM)

Personal life

Fontanes has been married to Elsa Pérez Sánchez since 1972. They have two children: Mirelsa and Sol Luis.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fontanes, Sol Luis 1949 births Living people Mayors of places in Puerto Rico People from Barceloneta, Puerto Rico Popular Democratic Party (Puerto Rico) politicians Prisoners and detainees of the United States federal government Puerto Rico politicians convicted of crimes University of Puerto Rico alumni