WEST NEW YORK – The mayoral campaign of incumbent West New York Mayor Felix Roque stepped up its war of words with rival Count Wiley, calling for Wiley’s resignation after already calling for his removal as a town commissioner in a civil lawsuit filed earlier this month.
Wiley has been accused along with his wife of committing legal fraud by falsifying their addresses on ELEC reports and voter registration forms, according to the lawsuit.
Plaintiffs Ernesto Vasquez, of West New York, and Gina Miranda-Diaz, of North Bergen, claim in the lawsuit filed on April 2 that voter records indicate that Beatriz Wiley, the wife of the West New York mayoral candidate running against incumbent Mayor Felix Roque, has voted consistently in North Bergen since 2003.
The plaintiffs, however, allege that Beatriz Wiley actually resides in West New York, claiming that Count Wiley has on numerous occasions stated that his wife resides with him in West New York. The plaintiffs point in the lawsuit to Count Wiley’s biography on the West New York town website, which states that he resides with his wife Beatriz in West New York.
The lawsuit seeks the removal of Count Wiley as West New York commissioner and Beatriz Wiley from the position of Hudson County Democratic County Committeewoman, representing Ward 4, District 5 of North Bergen.
New Jersey Superior Court Judge Hector Velasquez ordered the deposition of Beatriz Wiley to take place on Wednesday.
In a press release issued Tuesday, the Roque campaign publicly asks the Wileys to resign from their official positions, indicating that the campaign is referring their claims to the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office to ask for “a thorough criminal investigation.”
The Wiley campaign, however, has provided PolitickerNJ with documents that they assert question the motives of the plaintiffs.
One document purportedly shows a recently updated list of West New York town employees that lists one of the plaintiffs, Gina Miranda-Diaz. According to the list provided, Miranda-Diaz makes $110,000 per year as an assistant public health officer under the Roque administration.
The Wiley campaign also provided a copy of a January 2015 ELEC report that shows that Manuel Diaz was paid more than $3000 in legal fees and postage services by the Roque mayoral campaign. The campaign claims that Manuel Diaz is the husband of Gina Miranda-Diaz. According to an Internet search of Manuel Diaz in the New Jersey Courts Attorney Index, Manuel R. Diaz, whose office is listed as having been in Union City, was permanently disbarred in September 1999 for misconduct and misappropriation of clients’ funds.
As for the Roque campaign’s escalated call beyond Wiley’s removal for his resignation, Julio Morejon, the attorney representing the Wileys in the civil lawsuit, stated that his clients will be cleared.
“These are baseless and frivolous charges which have been filed by individuals who have no standing in bringing these claims before the court.
Mayor Roque’s press release is an admission by him that he supports this groundless action and demonstrates his desperation with the upcoming municipal election in West New York,” wrote Morejon in an email to PolitickerNJ. “Commissioner Wiley and Mrs. Wiley will be vindicated after all evidence is presented to the court.”
