For weeks, rumors have swirled about a major investigation into what could be the biggest case of public corruption in New Mexico history.

At the heart are three of the largest public building projects in Bernalillo County and a name familiar to everyone in the state: Manny Aragon.

An FBI spokesman confirms agents have been gathering evidence, but he'll say little else.

Even so, the probe has become a hot topic in the city's legal, architectural and construction communities.

"Obviously, it piques people's interest because people are trying to determine who's behind it and what they've done," said Mike Gibson, executive director of the Associated Contractors of New Mexico.

Then-New Mexico Senate President Manny Aragon puts on a microphone before doing an interview outside the Roundhouse near the end of the legislative session in 1997. (Stacia Spragg/Tribune file)

So far, what is clear is that three major public buildings are in investigators' sights: the $41 million Bernalillo County Courthouse; the $34 million Metropolitan Courthouse and the $90 million Metropolitan Detention Center.

The jail finally opened in 2003, almost two years late and $33 million over the original budget. The County Courthouse, widely known as the state District Courthouse, opened in 2001 but was plagued by disputes between judges and the county over project management.

Testimony in an ongoing lawsuit suggests contracts on the state District Courthouse included money to pay kickbacks, and Aragon, once the powerful leader of the state Senate, might have played a role.

One bit of evidence: a cryptic note reading "Manny - 50,000" in the books of a subcontractor on the state District Courthouse.

Aragon did not return calls for this story. However, in a deposition for the same lawsuit, he denied taking bribes or even knowing of the company involved.

The investigation

FBI spokesman Bill Elwell will say only that agents have been collecting evidence for a grand jury in a "white-collar, public corruption case." He declined to specify targets or projects.

However, state Auditor Domingo Martinez said the FBI asked him for documents related to the building of Metro Court, completed in 2004. In March, Metro Court Chief Judge Judith Nakamura said FBI investigators were seeking documentation related to the courthouse construction.

Martinez said his office also began an inquiry into "procurement issues" in construction of the Metropolitan Detention Center and turned those documents over to the FBI, as well.

Finally, Martinez's office in March requested documents about construction costs on the state District Courthouse, Bernalillo County spokeswoman Liz Hamm said.

Former Bernalillo County Manager Juan Vigil said he was interviewed a month-and-a-half ago by FBI agents about construction of the jail, and the primary subject of their questions was Aragon.

"They had allegations that somebody had given Manny $70,000 to ensure a contractor . . . got the job," he said.

Vigil said the questions turned on Aragon's power as state Senate president, a post Aragon held from 1988 to 2000.

"The insinuation was that because he was president pro tem of the Senate, we would cave in order to get a favorable result from him," Vigil said.

That wasn't the case, Vigil said.

As Bernalillo County manager from 1991 to 2003, Vigil was involved with construction of the state District Courthouse and the jail. Now the administrator of the village of Los Ranchos de Albuquerque, he says he was never pressured by Aragon or county commissioners when contracts were awarded.

It wouldn't have made a difference, he said, because contracts were awarded by a committee of city, county and law enforcement officials.

"Manny - 50,000"

Allegations of corruption on the state District Courthouse project emerged in a 2002 lawsuit between business partners Harvey Peel and Raul Parra.

Peel sued his associates in four companies, including P2RS Group Inc. and Technologies West Limited, claiming they were involved in racketeering activities - including illegal kickbacks.

In testimony for the case, Peel said Technologies West was paid $160,000 for work on the courthouse. His lawsuit alleges the company submitted invoices for services or goods not provided or "for amounts far in excess of the reasonable value of such services and goods, with the intent to deceive or cheat the state of New Mexico."

Out of the $160,000, two checks - totaling $50,000 - were made out to cash. That was the same amount as a puzzling entry - "Manny - 50,000" in Technologies West's books, Peel testified.

Aragon has denied accepting any bribe from Technologies West, Parra or Peel.

In a Nov. 19, 2002, deposition taken in the Peel case, Aragon said, "I have never heard of Tech West."

Aragon did say in his deposition that he provided legal services for P2RS. Peel testified Aragon got a $20,000 annual retainer, according to court documents.

Former P2RS President Darryl Ruehle, in an interview this week, said it was common for the company to "send money to politicians a lot, and Manny was one."

"(It was) classified as a retainer since he really never did anything for us," he said.

Ruehle said he left the company in 1997 because he felt it was being made more a political force than a business that provided a product.

Peel declined to comment for this story, and Parra could not be reached for comment.

P2RS is now dormant, said Judy Wagner, who was appointed receiver for company.

In response to Peel's lawsuit, his partners filed counterclaims, saying he came to the court with "unclean hands," and that they didn't owe him any money.

A confidential settlement was reached that required a payment of $150,000 to Peel, and P2RS was placed in receivership.

Further allegations

In other documents from the 2002 lawsuit, a contractor named Glen Perkal tells how he took precautions to protect his company, Integrity Networking Systems, when he was told by a court official to hire Technologies West as a subcontractor for telecommunications work at the state District Courthouse.

Before he struck the deal, Perkal said he wanted the court's request in writing to protect his company "from somebody coming in and saying that that money didn't need to be spent or that work didn't need to be done or whatever. Basically, it alleviated us of the responsibility for, you know, adding that cost into the contract or worrying about what it was really being used for."

On Sept. 25, 2000, he apparently got what he wanted. A letter signed by Court Administrator Bennina Armijo-Sisneros specified that Technologies West should be awarded the work.

Perkal's part of the courthouse contract was $400,000, plus $160,000 for Technologies West, according to the court documents.

Perkal in his testimony said he didn't work on the Metro Court project because Court Administrator Toby Martinez wouldn't put a similar arrangement with Technologies West in writing.

Perkal said he called up Parra and "told him we couldn't do the project the way he wanted us to do it, with all of this extra money involved, because we were concerned that somebody would find out, that we would get in trouble."

Perkal said "somewhere in the neighborhood of a million-and-a-half dollars" was the difference between the two proposals he had prepared, then withdrew, for work on Metro Court.