San Diego

A purchasing agent at the Navy Public Works Center pleaded guilty Monday to three counts of soliciting bribes, federal prosecutors said.

Rodrigo Plata Montefalcon, 59, of Chula Vista, pleaded guilty to demanding and receiving money and a share in future purchases from potential government contractors, Assistant U.S. Atty. George D. Hardy said.

The pleas resolved the latest in a series of cases prosecutors have filed since this summer involving charges of bribery at the Public Works Center, situated at the 32nd Street Naval Station, which maintains and repairs vehicles, machinery and parts.

The pleas also averted the filing of more charges against Montefalcon, which were likely because of three separate cases brought to prosecutors by the Naval Investigative Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Hardy said.

Montefalcon could be sentenced to a maximum of 45 years in prison, or 15 years on each count, Hardy said. He also could be fined up to $16,800, or three times the $5,600 cash he admitted he was given in bribes, Hardy said.

Sentencing was set for Jan. 8 before Judge Howard B. Turrentine.

Montefalcon’s position enabled him to steer government contracts for items such as auto parts and tires to particular vendors, Hardy said. The three counts refer to three separate contractors, one of whom operated out of Modesto, Hardy said.