Convicted ex-PAN director facing additional charges

Rafael Guardia Jaen whose sweetheart deal for the return of his property after being found guilty of embezzlement will be back in court for a hearing in another case.

The former director of the National Assistance Program (PAN)  will be in court on May 23 if lawyers fail to come up with another delaying tactic.

The preliminary hearing is for alleged illegalities in the purchase of school backpacks through the (PAN), and judicial authorities have ruled it will be open to the public.

Nineteen ex-officials and businessmen are also investigated for the alleged illegalities in the contracts for the distribution of the backpacks between 2010 and 2014.

The hearing was remitted to the  Fifteenth Criminal Court by the Second Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office in March 2016, but the hearings that had been fixed for 2016 were canceled, over excuses presented by defense lawyers.