: 1224785164

The details behind City Councilman Hiram Monserrate’s funneling of $400,000 in City funds to a suddenly defunct nonprofit organization grew even murkier this week.

Protestors gathered in front of Monserrate’s (D-Corona) headquarters on Monday to call for his and his chief of staff’s resignation following reports that the two are under investigation for supplying taxpayer funds to a community organization called L.I.B.R.E., which stands for Latino Initiative for Better Resources and Empowerment. The group could not produce expense reports or receipts to verify the use of funds and ceased operating as a neighborhood organization soon after.

To add to the confusion, Carlos Zamora, the contact person listed on the press release, said that though he supported the resignation of Monserrate and his chief of staff, Julissa Ferreras, he did not organize the event or authorize use of his name. The release, which went out earlier that day, was addressed from Zamora and a group called The Concerned Citizens of Corona. Five protestors, clinching sandwich boards to their chests that bore slogans such as “Corona’s Bridge to Nowhere L.I.B.R.E,” idled about, waiting for an event that never quite materialized.

Jaime Aracena, from East Elmhurst, said he has not heard of L.I.B.R.E and wasn’t sure who called the protest, but wanted to voice his concerns about the unwise way his representatives were using his money.

“They should have used the money for the community,” he said, adding that he was a supporter of Monserrate before this investigation. “We don’t know how they used the money. They didn’t explain anything.”

Victor Alonzo, of Corona, said the schools and small businesses in his neighborhood are in desperate need of help and the disappearance of these funds is a concern for the entire community.

At least one protestor was skeptical about the nature of the gathering.

“I’m here today because, although I agree with any investigation where there are questions about how people handled the funds, I’m very reluctant about who is behind all this,” said Humberto Suarezmotta, activist and chairman of LAPAC, which stands for Latin American Political Action Committee. Latinos in Queens have only one council representative, the Elmhurst resident said, which does not properly represent the needs of his growing community. “We have no representation and my thinking is that someone behind this wants to destroy the little representation we have.”

The word on the street, according to Suarezmotta, is that L.I.B.R.E’s former director, Rodolfo Herrera, left the country unexpectedly and moved to Colombia, though this allegation has not been confirmed. The Department of Youth and Community Development, which is investigating how to retrieve funds from L.I.B.R.E, denied comment about how the organization will move forward with the investigation now that L.I.B.R.E has ceased to operate.

Monserrate was not available for comment. As the former Chair of L.I.B.R.E, Ferrera said she is committed to working with the agency to help find answers to these important questions.