Colombian ambassador to Panama named in corruption scandal

THE NAME of Colombia’s ambassador to Panama has surfaced in a major corruption scandal in public contracts during the tenure of Mayor Samuel Moreno in Bogota (2008-2011). 

Testimony before the courts has splashed over Colombian politicians, ambassadors, companies and officials, following the testimony of two key witnesses on Friday May 7 reports the EFE news agency.

Caracol Radio on Friday May 7 revealed the content of the testimony of Hippolytus Moreno ex Bogota councillor and another witness whose name has not been revealed .The Attorney General of Colombia, has been researching the case for almost three years.
An Colombian involved in a previous scandal, for whom an international arrest warrant was issued, was given asylum by President Ricardo Martinelli.
In the plot known in Colombia as "the hiring carousel," which led the former mayor Samuel Moreno to jail in 2011, Twenty four councilors in the capital, not previously been mentioned are involved according to the witnesses.
One of them is the Liberal Party ex-councilor current Colombian ambassador in Panama, Angela Benedetti, who allegedly received checks worth 100 million pesos ($52,414) in relation to an endowment contract for a Bogota hospital.
Also accused is Andrés González, former governor of the department of Cundinamarca, who now represents Colombia in the Organization of American States (OAS), who managed contracts exceeding 100 billion pesos ($52.41 million dollars) for build, schools and markets.
Among the 24 new councilors linked to the case are representatives of all political parties of Colombia, with the sole exception of the Independent Absolute Renovation Movement, an evangelical Christian party.