Named link-man in PAN scandal in USA

Adolfo ‘Chichi’ De Obarrio, the former private secretary of Ricardo Martinelli who has been reported as the link man irregularities link between ex-president Ricardo Martnelli and former directors of he National Aid Program (PAN), remains out of the country.

His lawyer, Edna Ramos, saidTuesday in an interview that her client is not in Panama. She said he is in the United States with his wife, who is dealing with a difficult pregnancy. She said he will return to Panama “as soon as he is required to do so.”
Previously, De Obarrio was said to be visiting his sister, who is a former consul reports La Prensa.
De Obarrio has been identified as the connection between Martinelli and alleged cost overruns in the PAN. Former PAN Director Rafael Guardia Jaén said De Obarrio gave him instructions on behalf of Martinelli in terms of which companies to funnel contracts to.
“I took a percentage of the contracts that I gave,” Guardia Jaén told prosecutors on January 22. “But the suppliers were not chosen by me. I followed instructions from “Don  Chichi” De Obarrio.”
Ramos denied her client was involved in any wrongdoing. In a powerpoint presentation today, she outlined how her client came to own property worth more almost $700,000 despite making $5,000 a month. She said the money came from a family inheritance.
Obarrio celebrated his wedding at the Trump Tower a few months after joining Martinelli at the Presidential Palace. The extravaganza was reported to have cost up to $700,000 and was attended by all the upper echelons of government  and the CD party.