Martinelli lawyer tries to block investigation of AG

PANAMA’S turbid  justice system has become more muddied as a lawyer who represents former president Ricardo Martinelli attempts to block  Administration Prosecutor Rigoberto González  from investigating Attorney General Kenia Porcell for her handling of the Odebrecht case.

Porcell has. in the past,  been accused of dragging her feet on requests for cooperation by Brazilian and other authorities, and recently took the unusual  step of distributing a video to TV media  in which without media questioning, she outlined her actions,

Now Gonzalez, has upped the anti in a letter to Supreme Court Chief Justice Jose Ayú Prado to appoint a magistrate to act as a judge of guarantees and resolve a request that would prevent him from pursuing his investigation into Porcell on charges of abuse of authority and crimes against the public administration based on her handling of the Odebrecht case.

In the note that González sent to the Supreme Court chief justice, he noted that Pérez is part of the legal team of former President Ricardo Martinelli and a former employee of the AG’s office.

González said there are no grounds for the complaint, which is based on a law that prevents conflicts of interest. But he said the matter must be resolved by the Supreme Court.

According to the law regulating the judiciary, the administration prosecutor is the official tasked with investigating complaints against the Attorney General.