Martinelli fingered in Argentina bribery scandal

EX-PRESIDENT Ricardo Martinelli has been named in yet another coima (bribery) scandal, this time in Argentina , linked to the abortive helicopter purchase from Italian conglomerate  Finmeccanica.

Argentina’s  federal prosecuto Franco Picardi has  accused two representatives of Telespazio Argentina, S.A. for the alleged payment of bribes to Ricardo Martinelli (2009-2014) for the installation, maintenance and financing of a digital cartographic map.

An  Argentina Public Prosecutions (MPF) public bulletin  says  that the elements gathered by prosecutor Picardi presume  “the existence of crimes that could be part of the crime of transnational bribery”.

The alleged payment occurred in 2010. That year, the Panamanian government signed contracts with three subsidiaries of Finmeccanica, one of which was for the purchase of a digital map to Telespazio Argentina reports La Prensa

According to the  bulletin,  prosecutor Picardi said that “it has been reported that the president of Panama Ricardo Martinelli Berrocal would receive economic benefits from the award of these contracts. Indeed, the signatories have given him money disguised as ‘commissions’, equivalent to 10% of the amount of the contract sums. “

Such a “maneuver” would have involved the former Minister of Public Works Federico ‘Pepe’ Suarez.

The president of Telespazio Argentina, Edgardo Nicholas De Gracia, and the management of the firm Dario César Ventimiglia were charged by the Argentina  prosecutor  for the alleged payment of bribes to Ricardo Martinelli government officials for the contract to finance the digital cartographic map installation.

The contract, signed by Panama in 2010, provided for a payment of about 15.7 million euros.

According to research Picardi, Telespazio Argentina and De Graciaa were the subject of suspicious transaction reports totaling nearly $ 210,000.

De Gracia must explain the many trips he made to Panama between 2010 and 2015, “in addition to atypical costs of representation hotels, food, etc., through corporate credit cards”.

According to the prosecutor, the then  president Martinelli would receive economic benefits from the award of these contracts and the “maneuver” also allegedly involved – De Gracia and former Minister of Public Works, Federico Suarez and Italian Valter Lavítola and Paolo Pozzessere, the de former director of Finmeccanica on trial in Italy.

Consulted on the information, former minister Suarez  said that negotiations on the map was made by the former director of the Geographic Institute Tommy Guardia Israel Sánchez.

 La Prensa tried to locate Sanchez, but it was not possible. The paper also called Martinelli, in Miami  who , said “Ciao” and hung up.