Panama Judge Dismisses a Request Filed by Publio De Gracia.

Judge Kerine Jaén dismissed a request for violation of fundamental rights filed by the defense of Publio De Gracia, the former director of the General Directorate of Revenue (DGI) who is currently detained as part of an investigation for alleged unjustified enrichment. During a hearing that began at 9:00 am this Friday, September 4, lawyer Gladys Quintero De Gracia alleged that the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office kept the investigation confidential and did not allow her to review the file, which affects her client’s defense. De Gracia participated in the event via Zoom.

The defense for the former official argued that, prior to his client’s indictment, they requested a hearing to present these facts, but that it was never scheduled. A court review confirmed that the Judicial Office had indeed failed to schedule the hearing. In light of these events, Judge Jaén issued a warning to the Judicial Office. However, the judge did not grant De Gracia’s request, as the requested hearing had to be held before the formal charges were filed, a stage that had already been completed.

The former director of the DGI, who was transferred this week to La Nueva Joya prison, is charged with the alleged crime of unjustified enrichment, after an audit by the Comptroller’s Office found that he accumulated $724,682 whose legitimate origin he could not prove and that, in addition, he transferred funds to his wife Elaine Salterio and another woman, named Dinoska Ríos Santamaría, with whom he had a romantic relationship. With the transferred money, both women acquired luxury goods and vehicles. According to the prosecution, De Gracia had four credit cards whose balances he paid off in cash, without the exact origin of the money being established. He spent $397,000 on credit card payments alone.

Audio transcript