Panama Court Opens Two New Corruption Cases Against Ex-President

Edited by Ivan Martínez
2015-09-24 12:46:15

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Panama City, September 24 (teleSUR-RHC)-- Panama's former President Ricardo Martinelli, who served from 2009 until 2014, is facing wide criticism once again, after the Panamanian Supreme Court admitted on Wednesday two new cases of alleged corruption against him.     

The cases will be added to four other corruption charges the former president is already facing.  A statement released the Panama Supreme Court of Justice does not mention Martinelli's name for legal reasons, but the former president himself confirmed the charges on Twitter, adding the courts are trying to “falsely incriminate” him.  

One of the new corruption cases that Martinelli now faces was filed by Panama's stock market regulator, who asked for an investigation into whether Martinelli was inside trading on shares of Canadian miner Petaquilla, through the brokerage firm Financial Pacific, reported Reuters.    

The second case is related to a previous corruption scandal, alleging that a company contracted by Martinelli's administration was accepting bribes, according to Reuters.  

Some of the other corruption scandals Martinelli is facing include embezzlement and wiretapping during his time in office. One of the larger scandals include a US$45-million embezzlement scheme, forcing officials to sign “anomalous” contracts. One was with a dried fruit company, for millions of dollars of fruit which the government allegedly handed to students as part of a social program.

The former president fled the country in January, hours before the Supreme Court announced it would investigate corruption during his administration. He has been self-exiled in Florida, U.S. ever since.


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