Corruption suspect gets bail after 4 years dodging justice

A corruption suspect who has dodged the justice bullet for four years and is out of the country has been granted bail of $100.,000

The investigation of Ricardo Calvo Latorraca began on October 22, 2015 following publication of a story in La Prensa, which referred to alleged irregularities in the processing of a loan for the completion of the Amador Convention Center.

The Fourteenth Criminal Court granted bail of $100 000 not to be arrested, within the investigation of alleged peculation related to a loan from the  State Savings Bank(CA) , for $7 million, to the company HPC-Contracts P&V, for the construction of the Amador Convention Center.

In a resolution dated September 5, 2019, signed by Judge Vilma Urieta , it was decided to accept the petition presented by Calvo’s defense

Calvo is not in the country and Judge Urieta is knowledgeable about this, reports La Prensa since she herself details in her ruling that once he returns to Panama, the defendant must go to that court in order to communicate the location of his residence since the bond request did s not provided that information.

On November 7, 2016, the prosecution ordered the investigative statement to Calvo for the alleged commission of the crime of peculation, but he never appeared.. Then on August 20, 2018, the court granted a definitive dismissal for the case, which was confirmed by the Second Court of Justice on August 2, 2019.

The anti-corruption prosecutor Adecio Mojica announced an appeal to the Second Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court of Justice, to revoke the ruling of the Second Superior Court, which had dismissed Calvo and 21 other investigated suspects.

The ruling also favored  Riccardo Francolini and Jayson Pastor, former chairman of the board of directors and former general manager of the CA, and the former vice president Felipe Pipo Virzi, among others.