Odebrecht trial suspended for second time
The long-awaited trial for Odebrecht bribery, where 36 people are accused (including former presidents Ricardo Martinelli and Juan Carlos Varela) of alleged money laundering, is about to be postponed, for the second time reports La Prensa.
The reason is now that the Second Liquidation Court for Criminal Cases has not presented the list of admitted evidence (and other rejected ones), adduced by the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office and the defense lawyers.
Sources from the Public Ministry (MP) confirmed that, so far, the parties to the process have not been notified of the evidence order to be used in the trial and that, although it was issued on Tuesday afternoon, it must be complied with. with the process of notifying the prosecutor’s office and all defense attorneys. Some advocates stressed that no one has been notified yet. It seems unlikely that, in a few hours, 36 defenders can be notified.
Additionally, said order could be appealed before the Superior Court for the Settlement of Criminal Cases, if any of the parties is dissatisfied with the decision adopted by criminal judge Baloisa Marquínez, on the admission or rejection of any testimonial, documentary, or expert evidence.
It is unknown when the trial could be rescheduled since Judge Marquínez’s court has a full calendar. For example, the trial of the Panama Papers case is scheduled to take place from November 13 to December 4, 2023, and, as an alternative date, January 15 to February 2, 2024.
The Odebrecht trial was originally scheduled to take place from August 1 to 18, 2023. But on July 31 (that is, one day before the date scheduled to begin), the court announced its postponement, for the same reason: it was still Judge Marquínez was analyzing the evidence adduced by the prosecution and the defendants’ defenders.
The trial was then scheduled for its alternate date: from September 27 to October 17.
Basilio González, Jaime Ford’s lawyer; Carlos Carrillo, from the team of lawyers of former President Martinelli: Marcela Araúz, lawyer of Riccardo Francolini, and Arturo Sauri, lawyer of Dana Harrick, explained that in this scenario, the trial cannot be carried out, since it is necessary to know the evidence that was will present.
Last July, the team of prosecutors from the Public Ministry, delivered to the court several boxes with volumes of testimonials, expert evidence, and judicial assistance related to the Odebrecht case.
Last July, the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office delivered to the court several boxes with volumes of testimonial and expert evidence and judicial assistance related to transactions carried out through companies linked to Odebrecht abroad. There are 14 testimonial evidence and 30 documentaries.
Former attorney general Kenia Porcell, told La Prensa, that it was a complex investigation because the evidence was not in Panama. “International collaboration was required, coupled with the resistance of many for the investigations to advance. I must say that Panamanian society, serious and responsible media, and some journalists played an important role in its advancement. It should never be forgotten that from time to time the investigations were paralyzed because the terms expired and we had to wait for the resolution of the Judicial Branch to continue. And months passed”.
HISTORIC TRIAL
For Porcell, the Odebrecht case is a historic investigation that marked new paradigms in the prosecution of crime and in the way in which organized crime acts. “The prosecutors found that the evidence, the money, and the witnesses were outside the national territory,” she said.
