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panamajames
Joined 2012
Posts: 5096

6 years ago

Varela to recover stolen Martinelli money from Andorra

6 years ago

The President of the Republic of Panama, Juan Carlos Varela, met with his counterpart in Andorra, Antoni Martí, with whom he agreed to negotiate a legal agreement that would facilitate the recovery of the money in that jurisdiction, as a result of the alleged fines paid by the construction company Odebrecht.

The bilateral meeting was part of Varela's work agenda in New York, where he participated in the 72nd session of the General Assembly of the United Nations.

The prosecutor of the Nation, Kenia Porcell, revealed in a press conference, weeks ago, that through judicial proceedings, $ 12.8 million was obtained that supposedly were part of the payments of the fines that had been received from the company Odebrecht.

In his meeting with Martí, the Panamanian leader emphasized: "We are making efforts to recover hundreds of millions of dollars deviant, which belong to the people, in order to invest them in the people, putting the resources of the State at the service of all Panamanians '.

The Public Ministry of Panama located a million dollar account in Andorra. The money corresponds to Luis Enrique Martinelli Linares and Ricardo Alberto Martinelli Linares, children of the ex- president Ricardo Martinelli.

The location of this money was obtained after a judicial assistance that the Attorney General of the Nation of Panama made to that European country.

According to the investigations, the money was diverted by the brothers Martinelli Linares through a series of banking transactions that concluded with the deposit of the money in Andorra.

With the meeting between the two leaders, the formula is sought so that the money can be returned to Panama.

Varela also met Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau with whom he agreed to begin formal negotiations between the Foreign Ministries and aviation authorities to increase air connectivity between the two countries in order to boost tourism and investment.

At the meeting, Varela and his Canadian counterpart agreed that the relations of the two countries have strengthened, so they made a commitment to give the impetus needed to reach short-term agreements.

The Panamanian head of state took the opportunity to meet with Curacao Prime Minister Eugene Rhueggenaath to strengthen ties in tourism and trade.

He also met with the President of Honduras, Juan Orlando Hernández, with whom he discussed the upcoming SICA-Chile Summit on the issue of security and the need to strengthen judicial investigation capacities.

He also spoke with his Palestinian counterpart, Mahmoud Abbas, about reviving peace talks with Israel, and expressed his support for a peaceful settlement between the two states.

At the various meetings, the president was accompanied by the vice president and chancellor, Isabel de Saint Malo de Alvarado; the Director of Foreign Policy, Nicole Wong; and the Minister of Economy and Finance, Dulcidio De La Guardia.

Kovalenko & Vera Attorneys at Law in Panama

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