Saudi, Russian foreign ministers discuss regional issues in phone call    MWL chief meets Italian president in Rome; thanking him for supporting two-state solution    Saudi King and Crown Prince express condolences over deadly mid-air collision in Washington    National Cybersecurity Authority launches 2nd phase of Postgraduate Scholarship Program    Ettifaq sack Steven Gerrard after poor results, appoint Saad Al-Shehri as new head coach    GASTAT: Real GDP records growth of 4.4% in Q4 2024    Saudi Arabia launches inaugural Art Week Riyadh on April 6-13    Saudi crown prince and European Council president discuss over phone ways to enhance cooperation    Pentagon strips Gen Mark Milley of US security detail and clearance    Meta to pay $25m to settle Trump lawsuit over ban    Far-right vote on asylum rocks German parliament    Ex-US Senator Bob Menendez jailed for 11 years for bribery    HP is redefining the Future of Work with AI    NEOM's THE LINE set to begin vertical construction by end of year    Mona Lisa to be moved as part of major Louvre overhaul    Al-Nassr announces transfer of Brazilian forward Talisca to Fenerbahçe    Neymar bids heartfelt goodbye to Al-Hilal: I will always support you    SFDA chief rules out plan to ban sale of cigarettes or vapes    Al Hilal and Neymar mutually agree to part ways    Saudi Film Commission Joins Asian Film Commissions Network (AFCNet)    Bollywood star Saif Ali Khan 'out of danger' after attack at home in Mumbai    Order vs. Morality: Lessons from New York's 1977 Blackout    India puts blockbuster Pakistani film on hold    The Vikings and the Islamic world    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Guatemala wiretaps lead to fraud, bribery cases in govt
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 12 - 05 - 2015

People shout slogans near police as they celebrate the resignation of Guatemalan Vice President Roxana Baldetti, and demand the resignation of President Otto Perez Molina, outside Congress in Guatemala City, on Saturday. — Reuters
GUATEMALA CITY — Wiretappings that prosecutors used to track down a million-dollar fraud ring run out of the Guatemalan government have cost the vice president her job and now may lead to the Central American country's Supreme Court.
Recorded telephone calls obtained by The Associated Press show backdoor negotiating between a businessman, lawyers and suspects to pay bribes to free those detained in a scheme to defraud the state of millions of dollars in customs payments.
In a call dated April 16, clothing boutique owner Luis Mendizabal tells detainee Javier Ortiz to remain calm because he will be out soon, and mentions Supreme Court Justice Blanca Stalling Davila.
“Blanca Stalling is behind it and they have very good communication,” Mendizabal said of the behind-the-scenes negotiating to get Ortiz out of jail.
Stalling Davila told the AP late Sunday that she does not know Mendizabal, and that he could be confusing her name with her sister-in-law, Marta Sierra de Stalling, also a judge, who has been implicated in the case.
“I don't know anyone related to these people,” Stalling Davila said. “I don't have a reason to apply any kind of pressure nor interfere with any process.”
The tax fraud scheme has rocked Guatemala's political class since it was announced in April and has become the largest corruption scandal for a sitting president, in this case Otto Perez Molina. Former Vice President Roxana Baldetti resigned Friday and gave up her immunity from possible prosecution, a move lauded by Perez Molina.
Baldetti's former private secretary, Juan Carlos Monzon Rojas, is alleged to have been the ringleader of a scheme to defraud the state of millions of dollars by taking bribes in exchange for lower customs duties. Monzon is a fugitive whose last known whereabouts were overseas, and he is being sought by authorities.
Baldetti was ordered by a judge not to leave the country while the investigation is ongoing. Prosecutors argue that she must have known what was going on, though she has denied any involvement.
In a separate but related case against Mendizabal and others, five lawyers were arrested on Friday for allegedly bribing a judge to free suspects jailed in the corruption case. Prosecutors and a UN investigative commission said the attorneys paid Judge Marta Sierra de Stalling to release three suspects on bail, including Ortiz. He was later re-arrested after authorities learned of the bribery scandal.
Sierra de Stalling has not been charged because of judicial immunity, but prosecutors have asked the Supreme Court to revoke her immunity. Prosecutors say Sierra de Stalling heard the cases against the fraud suspects rapidly and freed three ringleaders and three employees of the Tax Administration involved in the case, arguing that they were not public officials.
Authorities say the facilities of Mendizabal's clothing boutique, Emilio, were used as the hub by the fraud ring. He also is a fugitive.
In another phone call, he is told by Ruth Emilza Higueros, one of the detained lawyers, that the law firm has various lawyers working on his case with “a lot of knowledge and a lot of friends.”
In the general corruption case, investigators say the fraud ring received bribes from businessmen to evade paying import taxes to the Treasury Departments. At least 50 private citizens and public officials, including Guatemala's current and former tax chiefs, are suspects in the customs scandal. Prosecutors said 27 are in custody.
Stalling Davila oversees all judicial matters on the Supreme Court that have to do with criminal cases. Her arrival to the bench was a troubled one, amid claims by civil groups that the election of judges was fraught with irregularities. — AP


Clic here to read the story from its source.