Corruption prosecutor ask more time for “historic” probe

Panama’s Anticorruption Prosecutor’s Office has asked for more time to complete what it describes as an historic investigation into the Odebrecht bribery scandal which involves numerous high profile suspects.

The request was made before the Twelfth Circuit Court of the First Judicial Circuit, to investigate crimes against the Public Administration and against the Economic Order.

In a statement, the Public Ministry MP reported that the petition was based on the fact that the lines of investigation of some people are paralyzed until an appeal for protection of constitutional guarantees is resolved.

In addition, there are pending the electoral penal jurisdiction of other involved parties, extradition proceedings [the two sons of Ricardo Martinelli]vand the processing of 16 bank accounts whose findings are recent additions to the file.

They emphasized that the MP has the responsibility of directing the investigation of the crimes, for which it must practice and order the execution of all those proceedings that contribute or are useful for the purposes of the investigation and thus determine or not the existence of the crime and the responsible.