Genaro López and Marco Andrade are Arrested for Allegedly Embezzling More Than $750,000 from Conusi

Panama City: Union leaders Genaro López and Marcos Andrade, wanted for the alleged commission of the crime against public administration in its form of embezzlement, were apprehended on the morning of Thursday, June 25, through the development of operation “SEDU”.  The investigation carried out by its Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office links the former general secretary of Suntracs and another union leader to a patrimonial loss of $750,951.50 to the State, related to funds allocated to the National Confederation of Independent Trade Union Unity (Conusi). 

In the search and seizure proceedings previously authorized by a judge of guarantees, carried out in West Panama and Panama, the National Police and the Prosecutor’s Office located evidence related to the investigation for events committed in the period (2019-2023).  The SEDU operation was carried out by the Attorney General’s Office, following an investigation initiated after an audit report that revealed irregularities in the use of state funds allocated to Conusi, derived from the 5% of educational insurance deducted from private and public sector workers. 

In the investigation file, the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office determined that the educational insurance funds deducted from all workers were not used to promote union education, nor to repair schools, but for other purposes not provided for by law.  The union members will face a hearing to determine if the arrest was legal, charges will be filed, and precautionary measures will be imposed. 

Because of this, the National Confederation of Independent Trade Union Unity will be making a statement.  It’s worth noting that López is also under investigation by the Second Prosecutor’s Office against Organized Crime. The former union leader is charged with the alleged crimes of aggravated fraud, money laundering, illicit association, and document forgery. He is subject to a precautionary measure requiring him to report to authorities every Friday in this case. 

The investigation dates back to 2022, when lawyer Fernández Bultrón filed a complaint on behalf of 143 construction workers affiliated with Suntracs on Bastimentos Island, Bocas del Toro province.  According to the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the case is related to an alleged purchase and sale transaction of an island in that province that was supposedly carried out by union leaders on behalf of the organization.

In the Case of Alleged Embezzlement of Funds from Conusi: Periodic Reporting is Ordered for Union Leader Genaro López Pictured Below

The Public Prosecutor’s investigation points to Genaro López and Marco Andrade, both union leaders, with an alleged financial loss exceeding $750,000 to the detriment of the Ministry of Labor with funds destined for Conusi.

Panama City, Panama: Judge Fermín Bonilla established precautionary measures for union leaders Genaro López and Marco Andrade, following the hearing held at the facilities of the Accusatory Penal System of Plaza Ágora, on Saturday, June 27.  Genaro López was ordered to report periodically to the authorities twice a week. Marco Andrade was placed under house arrest.

The prosecution appealed the measures ordered by the judge, so an appeal hearing was scheduled for July 14.  During the hearing, the judge upheld the arrest of both leaders and accepted the charges presented by anti-corruption prosecutor Eduardo Rodríguez. Genaro López was charged with aggravated embezzlement. Marco Andrade was charged with embezzlement by extension and money laundering. Both were arrested the previous Thursday at the request of the Public Prosecutor’s Office.

The Accusation

The accusation centers on the handling of funds allocated by the Ministry of Labor and Workforce Development (Mitradel) to the National Confederation of Trade Union Unity (Conusi) for worker training. Prosecutor Eduardo Rodríguez argued that irregularities occurred in the administration of these training funds between 2019 and 2025.  The Prosecutor’s Office based its case on an audit conducted by the Comptroller General of the Republic, which revealed a financial loss of $760,951 in the handling of funds from the Ministry of Labor and Workforce Development (Mitradel). 

Prosecutor Rodríguez detailed that among the irregularities detected were the absence of documents to support the payment of travel expenses, the lack of copies of the diplomas given to the participants of the seminars and deficiencies in the justification of the funds destined for the food of the workers.  Defense attorneys Miguel Ángel Rodríguez and Javier Quintero rejected the prosecution’s hypothesis. According to the defense, the union held the events using its own funds and subsequently submitted a report to the ministry detailing the expenses for travel allowances, breakfasts, and transportation. Quintero asserted that these expenses were properly documented, reviewed, and audited.

Another Investigation

Simultaneously, Genaro López faces another criminal process under the Second Prosecutor’s Office against Organized Crime, in which he was charged with the alleged commission of the crimes of aggravated fraud, money laundering, illicit association and falsification of documents.  In that investigation, the periodic reporting every Friday is maintained as a precautionary measure. 

According to the Public Prosecutor’s Office, this case originated in 2022, following a complaint filed by lawyer Rolando Fernández Bultrón on behalf of 143 construction workers affiliated with the National Union of Workers of the Construction Industry and Similar Trades (Suntracs) on Bastimentos Island, Bocas del Toro province.  The prosecution maintains that the case is related to an alleged transaction for the purchase and sale of an island that would have been carried out by union leaders on behalf of the organization.