From Raw Story:
A Democratic mayor in New Jersey that is closely aligned with Gov. Chris Christie (R) has been taken into custody for allegedly hacking into email accounts and a website of groups leading an effort to force him out of office.
West New York Mayor Felix Roque and his son, Joseph Roque, were arrested by FBI agents early Thursday morning, according to The Star-Ledger.
“The elected leader of West New York and his son allegedly hacked into computers to intimidate constituents who were simply using the internet to exercise their Constitutional rights to criticize the government,” U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman said in a statement. “We will continue to investigate and prosecute those who illegally hack into computers and disable websites with the goal of suppressing the exercise of that right.”
http://www.rawstory.com/...
Now I call Felix Roque a faux Democrat because, no sane Democrat should be an ally of Chris Christie. Chris Christie was the guest of honor in this Roque’s swearing in ceremony.
In fact, he was the guest of honor, invited to ceremoniously swear in newly elected West New York Mayor Felix Roque, a Democrat.
After finishing the oath of office, Roque turned to the crowd and said: “This is like a dream come true to have the governor — the governor, ladies and gentleman, of New Jersey! — here with us in West New York.”
http://www.nj.com/...
Christie came to bolster Roque’s political reputation for a very specific reason:
Christie’s presence was a direct shot at his political nemesis, U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), the king of Hudson County politics who enthusiastically backed the incumbent mayor that Roque ousted and who faces re-election himself next year.
Now what exactly did Roque do? According to Raw Story
According to a criminal complaint, Roque and his son schemed to take down the website www.recallroque.com, which aimed to advance a recall effort against him. After hacking into administrative email accounts, Joseph Roque allegedly disabled the site. The mayor is accused of then intimidating members of the recall group.
The complaint said that Roque threatened an organizer by saying he had “highly placed government officials and that everyone would pay for getting involved against Mayor Roque.”
Roque and his son face up to six years in prison.
And good riddance to bad rubbish. We do not need Democrats like Roque in the progressive movement. His criminal presence taints the entire party and will be used by the Right Wing to launch attacks at the party.