Stirrings in Boss Martinelli embezzlement case

THE PROSECUTOR in an embezzlement trial involving  Panama’s former president, Ricardo Martinelli has been interviewing defendants in a case that has been hanging fire for nearly two years.

Supreme Court Judge Cecilio Cedalise, is the prosecutor in the trial for alleged commission embezzlement to the detriment of the  State Savings Bank, Caja de Ahjorros (CA) and is conducting proceedings as part of the investigation reports La Prensa.

Cedalise has developed a series of interviews in the last two weeks with several defendants in the investigation by the Anticorruption Discharge Office, for a $10 million loan that the CA paid to the HPC Contracts P & V consortium, for the never completed construction of a convention center in Amador, that was diverted to matters unrelated to the project.

Carlos Carrillo, Martinelli’s lawyer, confirmed that the prosecuting Judge interviewed Voldy Wedemeyer, corporate credit manager of the CA when the loan was granted.

On February 2, the plenary of the Supreme Court of Justice admitted the case, after receiving copies of the prosecutor’s file, as Martinelli is mentioned by at least two of those investigated.

Rodrigo Arosemena Pino, ex-manager of the CA, confessed to the prosecutor’s office in 2016 that Riccardo Francolini, former president of the board of directors, urged the directors of the bank to “support the project [in Amador] because it was important to the boss. “

Ricardo Arango Pezet, the member of the board of directors of the bank, said something similar. “I remember that he [Francolini] asked to vote in favor, because of the importance of the project for the president [Martinelli] and his government,” he said.

Both Arosemena and Arango Pezet said they knew that when Francolini talked about the boss, he meant Martinelli.

On November 30, 2016, the prosecutor’s office forwarded the fiscal hearing to the Thirteenth Criminal Court, with a request to call 16 people to trial. The hearing has not been held