$30 million state bank loan scam hearing

The Public Ministry (MP) will ask on  Monday, July 23, for the judgment of 16 people before the Fourteenth Court for embezzlement to the detriment of the  Caja de Ahorros  (State Savings Bank).

The 16 include many former members of the Ricardo Martinelli inner circle. Including Riccardo Francolini who is facing multiple investigations and recently decided not to seek to run as the CD presidential candidate in the 2019 election.

Rolando Rodríguez, general secretary of the Attorney General’s Office, gave details of the investigation in a video posted on the site of the entity.

Rodriguez reported that a$30 million loan to the HPC-Contratas P & V consortium, got a fast track and irregular approval.

The MP maintains that the building of the Amador  Convention center was a façade for the loan.

Investigations carried out by the Anticorruption Prosecutor’s Office determined the deviation of around $9 million to three accounts of public limited companies related to money laundering by the Financial Pacific brokerage.

Another  case is related to the failed de Tonosí  irrigation project, where

the former president of the Board of Directors of the Savings Bank, Riccardo Francolini, received at least $500,000, presumed to state monies through the Los Andes Promoting and Development Society.

Also imputed are Felipe Virzi, Iván Clarke, Jayson Pastor, and Ricardo Calvo and  others

The preliminary hearing had been scheduled for June 11, but it was canceled by a request presented by Hermes Quintero, lawyer of the imputed West Valdés.