City of Socorro representative Jesus "Jesse" Gandara Jr. broke his silence on Monday after posting bond on state felony charges.

The Socorro city representative was greeted by family members after spending about seven hours at El Paso County jail.

"First of all, I want to thank God, because I know he doesn't put obstacles in front of me that I can't overcome," said Gandara Jr.

According to county jail records, Gandara was released after 9 p.m. Monday night, after posting $10,000 in bond.

"I want to thank everybody who's called me and given me their support since Friday, people that have called and said and wished me well," he said.

Gandara Jr. is accused of illegally spending  $4,000 from the mayor's discretional spending account and asking for reimbursements, allegations he denies.

"I'm very proud that we stood up for what's right, we've always said there's corruption within the sheriff's department's, Sheriff Richard Wiles, and these allegations they made against me."

According to an arrest affidavit obtained by KFOX14, both Gandara Jr. and Socorro police Sgt. Refugio Orta used the money to pay for travel expenses back in June 2011, money that was allegedly approved by Socorro City Council.

"Sheriff Wiles knows he cannot win in court because there is nothing there," said Gandara Jr.

KFOX14 contacted the El Paso County Sheriff's office for their response about Gandara's release, but were not available for comment Tuesday morning.

"It's two months 'till election, it's two weeks till early voting, and that is the reason why they have gotten even with me, with what they have done today," said Gandara Jr.

Although Gandara Jr. wouldn't elaborate any more about his charges outside of the jail, he said he was happy to be out, that he wanted to see his newborn son Francisco waiting for him at home.

He said he would speak more about his charges at Thursday's Socorro City Council meeting.

Sheriff's officials released the following statement Tuesday afternoon:

"The mission of the Sheriff’s Office is to enforce the laws of the State of Texas throughout El Paso County.  This involves the investigation of criminal complaints and working in conjunction with other law enforcement agencies and prosecutorial authorities.  Mr. Gandara’s case was but one of thousands of cases this office investigates throughout the year.  Based on a complaint brought forth by a citizen of Socorro, we completed our investigation of the allegations and submitted the case to the District Attorney’s Office.  The case was then presented to a Grand Jury which is made up of independent citizens of the county who considered the evidence and found probable cause to believe that Mr. Gandara has violated the law and returned an indictment against him.  The motivations for Mr. Gandara’s comments are obvious and they are completely without merit."