Democratic congressional candidate Bobby Pulido is facing criticism from his Republican opponent over past remarks involving a former bandmate who was convicted of a child sex offense, as scrutiny intensifies in Texas’ 15th Congressional District, as reported by Fox News.

Pulido, a Latin music performer and two-time Latin Grammy Award-winning singer, is the Democratic nominee in the South Texas district.

His campaign has come under renewed attention following comments made during a November 2018 concert referencing Frankie Caballero, a longtime bandmate who is a registered sex offender.

Caballero was convicted of indecent contact with an 8-year-old girl, according to records cited in the report. Pulido has maintained that he was unaware of Caballero’s criminal history and said he cut ties with him after learning of the conviction.

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The controversy centers on a video from the 2018 concert reviewed by Fox News Digital.

In the footage, Pulido referred to Caballero as a “bad man” and joked that although Caballero was born in South Bend, Indiana, he did not attend Notre Dame but instead went to “Penn State.”

After making the comment, Pulido laughed and said, “No, no, I’m just kidding, don’t worry.”

Republican Rep. Monica De La Cruz, who currently holds the seat and is seeking reelection, criticized Pulido’s remarks and questioned his past association with Caballero.

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In an interview with Fox News Digital, De La Cruz said, “The question isn't whether Bobby Pulido knew what his close friend did to these children — everyone knows he knew — the question is why Bobby Pulido spent decades bringing a pedophile around to our families?”

She added, “The answer is, he doesn't care, because he is a celebrity who barely even lives in this country.”

De La Cruz also referenced Pulido’s professional history with Caballero, noting that the musician first collaborated with him in the mid-1990s and continued working together after Caballero’s legal issues.

She said, “This is someone who was already faced child sex abuse charges when Mr. Pulido personally recruited him and built his entire career around him.”

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Caballero was first arrested on child sex abuse charges in 1992 and later convicted in May 2014 of a second-degree felony involving indecent contact with a minor.

He served time from 2014 to 2016, according to records cited in the report.

Following his release, Caballero resumed touring with Pulido between 2018 and 2021, appearing in performances in multiple cities, including Kansas City, Las Vegas, Minneapolis, Minnesota, and Tucson, Arizona.

Pulido’s campaign has pushed back against the criticism. A spokesperson said, “Monica and her máquina de mentiras (machine of lies) are at it again, telling lies because they don't want you to know the truth.”

The spokesperson added, “Bobby Pulido had no knowledge of Caballero's sex offender registration and would never knowingly associate with anyone with such a history.”

The campaign also pointed to allegations made against De La Cruz during her 2021 divorce proceedings. At that time, her ex-husband accused her of misconduct involving a child, claims she has denied.

A temporary restraining order was issued and later dissolved, with no further charges pursued.

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A spokesperson for De La Cruz’s campaign responded, stating that “only a depraved celebrity creep like Bobby Podrido (Spanish for ‘rotten’) would hide behind a wife-beater’s smears to distract from the fact that he spent decades knowingly exposing our families to a convicted pedophile — and was just caught on tape joking about his friend’s sex crimes against children.”

Additional criticism came from a former Democratic prosecutor in Hidalgo County, who told Fox News Digital that after reviewing the case, “Mr. Pulido has no plausible deniability.”

The prosecutor also said Pulido’s “Penn State” remark “can only be inferred as either a child sex abuse joke or a reference to the fact that his friend spent four years in the state pen — both are devastating to Mr. Pulido's defense.”

Caballero also faced additional charges between 2020 and 2021, including indecency by sexual contact with a child and attempted aggravated sexual assault of a child, though those charges were dismissed.

He was also charged with failure to comply with sex offender registration requirements and assault of a family member by impeding breathing or circulation, according to jail records cited in the report.

Pulido’s campaign manager, Abel Prado, previously stated, “First and foremost, Bobby extends his deepest sympathies and support to all of the victims involved.”

He added, “Frankie Caballero has long struggled with addiction issues, and Bobby Pulido has acknowledged and attempted to help him with that battle.”

Prado also said, “When Jimmy Montez Management learned of Caballero’s criminal history in 2021, he was immediately fired, and that relationship was severed.”

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“Bobby was never made aware of Caballero’s sex offender registration and would never knowingly associate with anyone with that kind of history.”

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