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More floods, and winds forecast

Posted on January 6, 2018 in Panama

400 families flooded out in Colon

Post Views: 274

 

THE UNSEASONABLE  cold front that has affected Panama for most of the week is forecast to continue into early next week over a large part of the country bringing more rain and winds.

A report by the Department of Hydrometeorology of the Electric Transmission Company, (Etesa), says that the east of the country will be most affected. “Instability is maintained as a result of the interaction of the south part of the cold front) and the low pressure in the east, “the report said, which means: “ rains of varied intensity on the sectors of the central and western Caribbean “.

The rains will fall on Bocas del Toro, Cordillera Central, north of Veraguas, Ngäbe-Buglé comarca and on the coast below Colón. There will also be isolated showers over sectors of the coast above of Colón, in the region of Guna Yala and the areas north, center and east of Panama, and in the province of Panamá Oeste.

Etesa warns that under these conditions flooding of rivers or streams can occur.

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Joint Task Force brings  aid to flood victims

Posted on January 6, 2018 in Panama

Post Views: 164

THE JOINT Task Force (FTC),  under the umbrella of the Operations Center of theCivil Protection System (Sinaproc) spent Saturday, Jan 6 delivering aid to nearly 300 familiesdisplaced  by floods

Those affected received mattresses, blankets, bags of food, toiletries and cleaning materials bottled water, baby items as part of the first coordinated response through the Office of the First Lady and the National Charity Lottery.

In Colón, inspections were also carried out in Portobelo, Verbena and Villa Guadalupe in Cativá. Rescuers released cleared roads to release residents with the cutting and removal of four fallen trees in Gatuncillo Norte y Sur, Sabanitas and Cativá.

The FTC said that  that the Emergency Operations Center (COE) maintains the green alert for Chiriqui, Bocas del Toro, Veraguas, Colon and Ngabe Bugle comarca and a prevention alert  prevention for the rest of the country due to the incursion of the cold front into the Caribbean, generating  clouds, rain, strong winds and waves.

In the province of Bocas del Toro inspections were carried out for landslides in Almirante and rescuers coordinated with the Ministry of Public Works at the collapse of the Charagre road in Changuinola, The sailing of boats was prohibited due to adverse conditions and affected people were transferred by ferry from Almirante to Isla Colón. Staff maintains permanent monitoring on the rivers Sixaola, Changuinola, Negro and El Silencio.

The director of Sinaproc, José Donderis, said that the FTC will not rest until it brings aid to all affected families.

He called on the population to follow the recommendations of the official sources and asked the population not to enter rivers or streams that may represent a risk due to floods and heads of water.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/joint-task-force-brings-aid-flood-victims

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2018 Car Sales Projections

The union of vehicle dealers in Panama expects stability in sales of new cars next year, after the year 2017 showed deceleration with respect to the previous year.

Friday, December 22, 2017

Laestrella.com.pa reports that "...The executive explained in an interview with Xinhua that Panama should not expect to see a greater fall in 2018 than in 2017, following a period between 2000 and 2016, with a slight interruption in 2008 and 2009, in relation to with the global crisis, in which Panama's economy grew significantly, as did vehicle sales."

See: "Sale of New Vehicles Down 13%"

".... Díaz explained that this year, and after a 2016 in which there was a record in the sales of new cars in the country, one element that had a small impact on the hardening of sales was a decline in migration of foreigners to the country which occurred between 2012 and 2015, and the fact that 'the consumer economy is more endured' (conservative)."

See also: "The Vehicle Market in Central America"

Added to these factors are also the more demanding credit conditions that banks have imposed on granting loans for vehicle purchases, according to representatives of the Adap.

https://www.centralamericadata.com/en/article/home/Projections_for_Car_Sales_in_2018

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Panama extradites former Mexican governor accused of corruption

Reuters Staff

January 4, 2018 / 12:03 PM

PANAMA CITY (Reuters) - A former state governor for Mexico’s ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) was extradited on Thursday from Panama to Mexico, where he faces corruption charges, Mexico’s attorney general’s office and secretary of external relations said in a statement.

Roberto Borge (C), former governor of Quintana Roo state of the ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), is escorted by Panamanian security forces while being extradited to Mexico to face charges for corruption, at the Toncontin airport in Panama City, Panama January 4, 2018. REUTERS/Carlos Lemos

Roberto Borge, who governed the touristy state of Quintana Roo from 2010 to 2016, was taken under strict security from the offices of Panama’s national police to an air force base, where he boarded a Mexican plane, local television footage showed.

Mexican prosecutors accuse Borge of using funds obtained illegally, embezzlement and abuse of public office. Borge has denied the allegations.

Borge was arrested in Panama City in June as he was preparing to board a flight to Paris. Panama’s foreign ministry said last week that it would send Borge to Mexico.

For the PRI, the extradition is the latest reminder of corruption scandals as the party tries to rehabilitate its image ahead of a presidential election in July.

The PRI, which is trying to keep hold of power as President Enrique Pena Nieto’s term ends, has faced a spate of graft allegations, and four of its former governors were arrested on such charges last year in various countries, including Borge.

Last month, Mexican authorities arrested Alejandro Gutierrez, a former high-ranking PRI official, in a corruption investigation in the northern state of Chihuahua.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-panama-crime-mexico/panama-extradites-former-mexican-governor-accused-of-corruption-idUSKBN1ET1Z5

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Former Mexican governor to be extradited from Panama Jan. 4

Elida Moreno

 

December 29, 2017 / 3:10 PM

PANAMA CITY (Reuters) - Panama said on Friday that it will hand over a former state governor for Mexico’s ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) to Mexican authorities next week for extradition to face corruption charges.

FILE PHOTO: Former governor of Mexico's Quintana Roo state Roberto Borge (C) is escorted by policemen while leaving a court of appeals in Panama City, Panama, June 6, 2017. REUTERS/Carlos Lemos

Roberto Borge, who was governor of the state of Quintana Roo from 2010 to 2016, was arrested in Panama City in June as he was preparing to board a flight to Paris.

A spokeswoman for Panama’s Foreign Ministry told reporters that on Thursday morning Mexican authorities will take Borge to Mexico, where prosecutors accuse him of using funds obtained illegally, embezzlement and abuse of public office.

Corruption will be one of the major issues in Mexico’s presidential election next July, with public discontent widespread over a spate of conflict-of-interest rows that have dogged the Cabinet and President Enrique Pena Nieto himself.

Borge has long been accused of corruption by opposition parties. He has denied the allegations.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mexico-corruption-panama/former-mexican-governor-to-be-extradited-from-panama-jan-4-idUSKBN1EN1N3

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Honduras, Panama Next in Line to Announce Embassy Move

By Dov Benovadia

Tuesday, December 26, 2017 at 9:43 am | ח' טבת תשע"ח

After Guatemala announced its intention to move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Yerushalayim, Honduras and Panama are set to be the next countries to announce their intention to do so. Yisrael Hayom quoted Palestinian Authority sources as saying that they had been “officially informed” that an announcement on the matter is likely to come within days.

The report said that PA officials have been trying to convince the two countries to cancel, or at least postpone their announcement. Like Guatemala, the embassy move would not take place until after the American embassy was moved, the sources said. In response, the Palestinian Authority said that the Guatemalan decision was “shameful.”

Over the weekend, Liviu Dragnea, speaker of the Romanian parliament and head of the country’s ruling Social Democratic Party said that his country should move its embassy to Yerushalayim. “All Israel’s central institutions are in Jerusalem, and ambassadors and embassy staff commute from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. We should think about it very seriously,” he was quoted as saying in local media reports.

The announcements about embassy moves came after the historic declaration three weeks ago by President Donald Trump that the U.S. was preparing to move its embassy to Yerushalayim. After the Trump announcement, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu was quoted as saying that Israelis could expect more countries to follow in Washington’s wake. Other countries will move their embassies to Yerushalayim, he said – and it will happen even before the American Embassy is moved from Tel Aviv to the capital. In fact, he said, Israel was already in contact with some of those countries.

A report on Channel One said that those countries included the Philippines, as well as several African countries.

http://hamodia.com/2017/12/26/report-2/

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Honduras, Panama to Transfer Embassies to Jerusalem, Following US and Guatemala

By

Hana Levi Julian

-

9 Tevet 5778 – December 26, 2017

 

Just two days after the president of Guatemala made history as the first Central American leader to announce his decision to relocate his nation’s embassy to Jerusalem, Honduras and Panama are following suit.

Israel and Honduras signed a declaration on bilateral security cooperation in December 2016, during a visit to Jerusalem by Honduran President Orlando Hernandez. It was his second time in the Jewish State.

Honduras was the other Latin American nation that had the courage to vote against the United Nations General Assembly resolution calling for a wholesale rejection of U.S. President Donald Trump’s historic recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and his decision to move the American embassy to the holy city.

The Israeli free daily Yisrael Hayom quoted Palestinian Authority sources on Tuesday as saying Ramallah had been “officially informed” that an announcement would likely be forthcoming within days.

As with Guatemala, the embassies will transfer from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem only after the relocation of the U.S. Embassy, according to the report.

The announcement came barely a day after Dr. Gustavo Perednik, a well-known Spanish-language commentator on Latin American and Israeli affairs and a native of Buenos Aires, Argentina, predicted that Honduras and Panama — among others — would be next in line to follow Guatemala. Perednik said that a major shift in international politics is taking place, particularly in Latin America.

The Palestinian Authority referred to the decision by Guatemala’s President Jimmy Morales as “shameful.”

President Trump made his historic announcement on December 6. Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has told Israeli lawmakers that the leaders of numerous other nations have also been in touch with him to discuss similar plans.

Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein has said his counterparts in other nations have made similar comments as well in recent days.

http://www.jewishpress.com/news/us-news/honduras-panama-to-transfer-embassies-to-jerusalem-following-us-and-guatemala/2017/12/26/

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Panama Seizes Record 84.6 Tons Of Drugs In 2017

Last update: 28/12/2017
 

PANAMA CITY, Dec 28 (BERNAMA-NNN-Xinhua) -- Panamanian authorities seized 84.6 tons of illicit drugs in 2017, setting a record in drug confiscation, government agencies said.

The Ministry of Public Security, National Aeronaval Service, the National Border Service and the Police Department unveiled the figure at a press conference on Wednesday, saying international cooperation was key to successfully combating drug trafficking.

A total of 72 tons of drugs had been impounded in 2016, according to the officials.

Deputy Police Director Alonso Vega said authorities also seized some 6 million U.S. dollars, along with 113 weapons, 56 boats and 253 vehicles, as well as 1,000 glass tanks that were used to manufacture methamphetamine, a type of artificially synthesized recreational drug.

In addition, 147 people were arrested on drug smuggling charges. Most smuggling operations were conducted on the sea, officials said.

-- BERNAMA-NNN-XINHUA

http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v8/wn/newsworld.php?id=1422869

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Boat traffic threatens the survival of Panama's Bocas Del Toro dolphins

Geneticists recommend designating isolated dolphin population as 'endangered'

Date:

December 22, 2017

Source:

Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute

Summary:

Bottlenose dolphins in Panama's Bocas Del Toro Archipelago should be designated as endangered say the authors of a new study. Biologists have discovered that the roughly 80 dolphins in the archipelago do not interbreed with other Caribbean bottlenose dolphins. Their low numbers jeopardize their long-term survival, which is threatened by increasing local boat traffic that killed at least seven dolphins in 2012.

 

Unsustainable tourism practices threaten dolphin populations in Panama's Bocas del Toro Province.

Credit: Sean Mattson, STRI

 

 

Bottlenose dolphins in Panama's Bocas Del Toro Archipelago should be designated as endangered say the authors of a new study. Biologists working at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute discovered that the roughly 80 dolphins in the archipelago do not interbreed with other Caribbean bottlenose dolphins. Their low numbers jeopardize their long-term survival, which is threatened by increasing local boat traffic that killed at least seven dolphins in 2012.

Worldwide, the common bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) is considered of "least concern" on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List of Threatened Species. But this belies the risk faced by the Bocas dolphin population, which the study suggests was founded by a small dolphin family a few thousand years ago. In addition, the dolphins of Bocas also appear to have no meaningful exchange with the nearest permanent dolphin population, only 35 kilometers (22 miles) away in Costa Rica. These open-water dolphins seem to steer clear of the murky green waters around the archipelago.

Researchers concluded that the small -- and possibly decreasing -- Bocas dolphin population should be of great conservation concern. "

Our results indicate that the population of dolphins in Bocas Del Toro is genetically isolated from other populations in the Caribbean, and given the high impact of boat traffic on the animals, we suggest that its conservation status be changed, at least at a local level," said visiting Smithsonian scientist and the study's lead author Dalia C. Barragán-Barrera, from Colombia's Universidad de los Andes. "Conservation priorities are largely dependent on the IUCN conservation status of the species."

A special IUCN or local conservation status for an isolated bottlenose dolphin population is not unique. Subpopulations or subspecies in the Mediterranean Sea, the Black Sea and Fiordland in New Zealand, range from vulnerable to critically endangered.

For the study, Barragán-Barrera sampled skin from 25 dolphins. The genetic results showed the dolphins all shared the same haplotype -- a set of genes inherited from a single mother. The haplotype has not been found in any other Caribbean dolphins, suggesting that the population has long been isolated. Her findings suggest that the dolphins have adapted to this unique marine ecosystem of turbid, mangrove-surrounded waters, which are shallow, sheltered from waves and free from large predators.

Field research was conducted at STRI's Bocas Del Toro Research Station and published Dec. 13 in the journal PLOS One.

The findings are the latest from a research group led by Laura May-Collado, a lecturer at the University of Vermont, who began studying Bocas dolphins in 2004 during her doctoral research. During that time, May-Collado and her team have seen an explosion in dolphin-watching tourism. During the high season (between November and March), dolphins interact with as many as 100 tourism boats per hour.

In addition to expanding understanding of the biology, ecology and genetics of the dolphins of Bocas, her team has studied human impact on the cetaceans. Their work shows how boat noise affects dolphin communication. They have also documented fatalities and injuries caused by boat strikes and entanglements with fishing nets. Their work with the local tourism industry has had some degree of success.

"Because of the pressure of the dolphin-watching industry on this population and the impending threats to the dolphins, the International Whaling Commission made four recommendations to the government of Panama to develop strategies to protect this population," the researchers said. "Despite these recommendations, dolphin-watching industry continues to grow and impact the dolphins of Bocas Del Toro."

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/12/171222090307.htm

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Toll bar smasher  owing $2,995 to trial

Posted on January 5, 2018 in Panama

Post Views: 325

A WOMAN DRIVER  who breaks toll bars and consistently evades payment on the North and South Corridors owes $2,295 has been called to trial by anti corruption prosecutor Johaira González, for the supposed commission of a crime against the National Highway Company (ENA).

The investigation began on  February 17, 2017, when the surveillance cameras at  Ascanio Villalaz on  Corridor North recorded a car breaking the toll bar to avoid payment.

The vehicle has been using the PanaPass system since August 15, 2014, and has evaded the payment of the toll on the North and South corridors.

The prosecution states that the user owes the sum of $2,995 and uses both corridors every month, often tailgating other cars to get through or breaking the barriers located in the toll booths.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/toll-bar-smasher-owing-2995-trial

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IMPUNITY: Insider stole millions, dodges jail

Posted on January 5, 2018 in Panama

 

Have money will walk

Post Views: 233

 

A BUSINESSMAN who told prosecutors that he made regular deliveries of suitcases stuffed with $400,00 -$600,000  in cash to ex-president Ricardo Martinelli, is absolved from jail time by paying $300,000.

Cristóbal Salerno was sentenced on Friday, January 5, to  48 months in prison, replaced by payment of a fine. In messages posted on Twitter, the Public Ministry (MP) explained that First Criminal Circuit, Judge  Agueda Rentería, approved  a punishment agreement and condemned Salerno to a prison sentence, but he  will not go to jail because the court replaced the penalty with a  500 days fine at the rate of $600 a day, making a total of $300,000 d payable in four months.

The judge also ordered the confiscation of $20 million in the case, investigated by anti-corruption prosecutors.

Luis Cucalon.

Cobranzas del Istmo received a lucrative contract from the former government to collect back taxes on a commission basis. It collected more than $40 million, Salerno also said he gave a check for $2.8 million to former Revenue Department Director Luis Cucalón, recently jailed in another case. Salerno is also facing criminal charges in another investigation.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/impunity-martinelli-buddy-stole-millions-dodges-jail

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IMPUNITY: Insider stole millions, dodges jail

Posted on January 5, 2018 in Panama

 

Have money will walk

Post Views: 233

 

A BUSINESSMAN who told prosecutors that he made regular deliveries of suitcases stuffed with $400,00 -$600,000  in cash to ex-president Ricardo Martinelli, is absolved from jail time by paying $300,000.

Cristóbal Salerno was sentenced on Friday, January 5, to  48 months in prison, replaced by payment of a fine. In messages posted on Twitter, the Public Ministry (MP) explained that First Criminal Circuit, Judge  Agueda Rentería, approved  a punishment agreement and condemned Salerno to a prison sentence, but he  will not go to jail because the court replaced the penalty with a  500 days fine at the rate of $600 a day, making a total of $300,000 d payable in four months.

The judge also ordered the confiscation of $20 million in the case, investigated by anti-corruption prosecutors.

Luis Cucalon.

Cobranzas del Istmo received a lucrative contract from the former government to collect back taxes on a commission basis. It collected more than $40 million, Salerno also said he gave a check for $2.8 million to former Revenue Department Director Luis Cucalón, recently jailed in another case. Salerno is also facing criminal charges in another investigation.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/impunity-martinelli-buddy-stole-millions-dodges-jail

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Wife of key  bribery suspect also detained  

Posted on January 5, 2018 in Panama

 

Rodríguez Salcedo and Barrio

Post Views: 212

 

THE WIFE of a lead detained suspect in the “Blue Apple” bribery case is in preventive detention and 30  other people have been charged in what promises to be a major scandal mimicking Lava Jato of Odebrecht infamy.

The investigation involves the alleged payment of bribes through a $49 million central kitty and other acts of corruption by contractors of the Panamanian State.

The lawyer Federico Barrios was interrogated on Thursday, January 4  and is now in preventive detention.  His wife, Ana Mercedes Briones, has been detained since Wednesday.

Both are in the cells of the Judicial Research Directorate in Ancón. Banker Joaquín Rodríguez Salcedo was summoned for questioning, on Friday.

The investigation was originally assumed by the Attorney General  Kenia Porcell who said that she had “strong evidence” of the commission of several crimes.

Anti-corruption prosecutor Aurelio Vásquez, now in charge of the investigation, ordered inspections of several banks.

Rodríguez Salcedo and Barrios -according to the investigation- created a structure to pay fictitious invoices and buy real estate with the monies produced by bribes.

The Sixth Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office has agreed on  at least five  collaboration deals

The prosecutor’s office has not provided the identity of the collaborators, whose roles were as “intermediaries”, to facilitate money transfers. reports La Prensa.

As part of the investigations, the anti-corruption prosecutor Aurelio Vásquez has charged some 30 people with alleged illicit association and money laundering. Their identities are still under wraps.

Barrios had a detention order but was out of the country for some time. He returned to Panama Wednesday from the United States, after hearing about his wife’s detention. He went to the anti-corruption prosecutor’s office, and at the end of the day,  headed for a cell near his wife.

Joaquín Rodríguez Salcedo is the former vice president of Factoring and Finance of Global Bank. Operations in this subsidiary generated the first investigations, over allegedly unlawful transactions, made during the time in which Rodriguez Salcedo was in charge.

Barrios, a lawyer by profession, was president and legal representative of the Blue Apple Services Inc. Listed as directors are  Octavio Samaniego and Darla Alain, all had offices on the 9th floor of the Century Tower building, located on Ricard Avenue.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/wife-key-bribery-suspect-also-detained

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Assembly ordered to deliver $68 million scam records

Posted on January 4, 2018 in Panama

 

Assembly president Yanibel Abrego

Post Views: 188

 

Panama’s National Assembly is in contempt  after failing to obey a Supreme Court order to deliver to La Prensa  documentation of professional services contracts, totaling $68 million many of them false which  opens the possibility of further exposure  of  temporary “contracts” for work not done

La Prensa previously revealed that, in addition to donations that did not reach their real beneficiaries, more than 17,000  contracts were processed for temporary work, of which a good part was not done.

“The ruling will have a major impact on the lawsuits of habeas data and is information that has public relevance, “because the public demands to know under what terms managed the contracts, said the ex-magistrate Esmeralda de Troitiño.

It is information claimed by citizens, said Juan Diego Vásquez, representative of the Alliance of Law Schools Of Panama. “It is urgent that the Assembly fulfil the order of the CSJ and the years of opacity are over. Thanks to that information, those  responsible can be brought to justice promptly and effectively”

With this “historic” ruling, we will ask for the information to act, through criminal remedies, against those who participated in the contracts, said Annette Planells, of the Independent Movement (Movin).She added, that Movin had also asked the Assembly for the information but they denied it. Planells called for a review of the penalties for violating the Law of Transparency.

The Foundation for the Development of Citizen Liberty said the ruling is “good news”.

La Prensa revealed in a journalistic investigation that, in addition to the donations that did not reach their final beneficiaries, the temporary work contracts were delivered to people

that did not have to work and they only received 5% of the value of the contract. The rest was in the hands of deputy assistants.

Some 17,000 professional services contracts many of them, false were issued between July 2014 and December 2016, for the sum of $68 million.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/assembly-ordered-deliver-68-million-scam-records

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$239 million Investment in Public Works

Plans are underway to build a water treatment plant in the Ancón district of the province of Panama that will include a raw water adduction line and potable water pipeline.

Thursday, January 4, 2018

According to the interactive platform "Construction in Central America" complied by CentralAmericaData, the National Aqueduct and Sewer Institute of Panama (Instituto de Acueducto y Alcantarillados Nacionales) submitted an Environmental Impact Study (EIA) to build, in Ancon, a water purification plant that will include an intake point or catchment of raw water from the Chagres River, raw water adduction line to the water treatment plant, and potable water pipeline to Panama City. It will be developed within an easement of up to 20 meters, and an approximate length of 28.5 km. 

See also: "Construction in the Region: The Most Important Projects in 2017"

According to the EIA, the project consists of the study, design, construction, operation and maintenance of the Gamboa water treatment plant, which will have an input flow to the treatment plant of 85 MGD maximum. 

The plant will produce a net flow of 60 MGD and will work with the infrastructure to be designed and built with a number of single operation units that will allow the plant to work even while units are out of operation due to maintenance, flocculation modules, sedimentation and filters to be determined according to the design.

According to the study, investment in the project will be approximately $239 million.

https://www.centralamericadata.com/en/article/main/239_million_Investment_in_Public_Works

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Panama promoting 2019 WYD at German fair

Posted on January 4, 2018 in Panama, Panama

 

Casco Viejo a prime tourist destination

Post Views: 150

 

PANAMA   will be a guest of honor at the fiftieth edition of the international tourism trade fair in Stuttgart (Germany),  January 13 to 21.

It is the country’s first appearance at the event and promotion of the World Youth Day (WYD) to be held in January. 2019will  be a major focus.

Archbishop, José Domingo Ulloa, will highlight in a speech the benefits of the Catholic activity. that is expected to bring together about a million people from around the world.

During the nine days of the fair, the  Tourism Authority, ATP will promote Panama vacation activities and locations including fishing, golf, mountains, islands, beaches, historical sites and hiking, among others.

it is estimated that more than 15,000  people will attend the fair with about 100  travel representations from Argentina, Brazil, China, Spain, the United States, Greece, India, Italy, Kenya, Peru, Poland and Portugal.

The Stuttgart event is one of the most important fairs in Europe focused on selling popular vacation destinations and known as a point of reference for promoting leisure and adventure tourism.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/travel/panama-2/panama-promoting-2019-wyd-german-fair

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Blue Apple  bribery suspects facing interrogation

Posted on January 4, 2018 in Panama

 

Aurelio Vasquez

Post Views: 173

 

ARREST and interrogation orders have been issued for two of the prime suspects in Panama’s latest high profile corruption scandal, labeled “Blue Apple” involving the alleged payment of bribes and other acts of corruption by state contractors.

At the center of the investigation is the company Blue Apple Services Inc, which would have channeled $39.6 million dollars in alleged bribes for direct contracts and tenders through Panamanian banks

Sixth Anticorruption Prosecutor of Aurelio Vásquez, has  issued orders  for the appearance of

Joaquín  Rodriguez

Federico Barrios and Joaquín  Rodriguez Salcedo.

The questioning of Barrios, a lawyer, began on Thursday, January 4  and Rodriguez, a banker will face prosecutors on Friday.

They are accused of creating a structure to pay fictitious invoices through which bribes t were paid and delivered to government benefactors.  They also acquired real estate to disguise the payment of bribes.

So far, effective collaboration agreements have been agreed with five people.

The file was initially in the office of Attorney  General Kenia Porcell, and was assigned it to the Sixth Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/blue-apple-bribery-suspects-facing-interrogation

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Martinelli Extradition Hearing Delayed Again

Posted on January 4, 2018 in Panama

Post Views: 284

 

THE MIAMI court hearing that will decide if ex-president Ricardo Marinelli will be shipped back to Panama to face trials for wiretapping and embezzlement has been delayed once again. 

It will now be held on January 23. After the CD Party elections on January 21, when the jailed  Martinelli will be vying to retain leadership of the CD party he founded to further his political ambitions.

The information was confirmed to TVN News on Thursday, January 4 by Sidney Sitton, part of Martinelli’s expansive legal team.

This is the second time that the hearing, has been delayed. Martinelli’s defense will deliver the arguments of the habeas corpus appeal filed before a Miami court.

It had been scheduled for January, 16 by Judge Marcia G. Cooke of the Federal Court of the Southern District of Florida.

The legal team of the former president in the United States presented the habeas corpus on September 28 in an attempt to dismiss the decision of Federal Judge Edwin G. Torres, who determined the extradition of Martinelli to answer for the case of wiretapping during his Government.

When he appears, Martinelli will have been detained for seven months in the Miami Detention Center, awaiting a response from the US Department of State regarding his possible shipment to Panama.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/martinelli-extradition-hearing-delayed

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Robbery not motive in murder of American

Posted on January 4, 2018 in Panama

Post Views: 822

 

THE MURDER  of an American citizen in a  Punta Pacifica restaurant on Thursday morning,  January 4, was not connected to robbery  said the  Public Prosecutor’s Office (MP) later in the day

“For the time being, robbery has been ruled out as done, since according to the preliminary investigations it was a direct attack against a customer “, according to a press release

The American was shot and wounded in the head and two people of Italian nationality were also injured during the incident.

Reports indicate that two suspects   involved could be seen running from the scene, The person who pulled the trigger  wore a black sweater, jeans blue jeans and black cap with clear letters on the front

The MP calls for the collaboration of witnesses, in order to identify those involved. The identity of those who collaborate with the investigation will not be revealed says the MP.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/robbery-not-motive-murder-american

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Panama Band in New Year Rose Parade

Posted on January 3, 2018 in Panama

Post Views: 166

 

THE Herberto López Band from the José Daniel Crespo school in Chitre, made its second appearance representing Latin America at the annual Rose Bowl parade in Pasadena, California, on Monday, January 1.

The band composed of 240 students, was one of 22 bands that attended the activity , which has been held annually to welcome the New Year. since 1890.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/panama-band-new-year-rose-parade

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MEDIA WATCH:  Jail Criminal Structure, Includes Guards

Posted on January 3, 2018 in Media Watch, Panama

Crime thrives at Panama's notorious La Joya prison

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OPINION: Undoubtedly, the prison system is one of our failures as a society and the biggest problem is that successive governments perpetuate the evil. This is a clear example that business is above justice and the common good.

There are more than 15,000 detainees who are fed with our taxes, without reason of being detaine . And as if that were not enough, each government announces the construction of new prisons, ‘modern and with more security’, as if this were a great action. The truth is that among the  detainees that cost us an arm and a leg, there are more than 3,000  foreigners who can well be deported and relieve overcrowding and the heavy burden of their maintenance..

If we add that the detainees, instead of instead of being rehabilitated  what happens is the opposite. Within our prisons there is a whole corrupt system that goes from the stores of custodians that generate huge profits, to new centers of command and action of the crime bosses. They have a whole network at their service, from custodians to other criminals, and from there they operate at their ease, with telephone lines and weapons. They give orders and act as if they were in total freedom. It is a corrupt system that shames us and that should be eliminated immediately. We have to refine this treatment scheme for the detainees, because what there is represents the living example of a failure of our society … LA ESTRELLA , Jan 3

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/media-watch-jail-criminal-structure-includes-guards

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Health Alert, Ministry pulls blood pressure pill from shelves

Posted on January 3, 2018 in Alerts, Panama

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THE MINISTRY of Health (Minsa) has issued an alert about the use of a medication manufactured in India, which has been widely used by The Social Security  System (CSS) in the treatment of hypertension.

The Ministry suspended the use and commercialization of Lisinopril USP (20 milligrams), on Wednesday, Jan. 3 after the National Directorate of Pharmacies and Drugs warned that the provider did not comply with some requirements when requesting the renewal of the sanitary registration.

The drug is manufactured by Aurochem Pharmaceutical (I) PVT, LTD, India.

CSS’s national deputy director of Logistics, Simón Zotillo told  a press conference that the

institution will withdraw the medicine from the pharmacies of executing units and look for other options to meet the demand.

“That provider has been supplying us in previous periods and was predicted to deliver us until 2020. But, in this situation, we are making adjustments to the internal level of the institution, “he said.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/health-alertministry-pulls-blood-pressure-pill-shelves

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Final Touches To Boquete Flower And Coffee Fair

Posted on January 3, 2018 in Coming Events, Panama, Panama

Fair will feature 37 gardens

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FINAL PREPARATIONS are underway for the annual Flower and Coffee Fair in Boquete Chiriqui with attendance likely to tp the near 158,000  who visited last year.

The (Feria de las Flores y  Cáfe, will run from January 11 to 21 and 200 exhibitors will feature 37 gardens, and over 35 varieties of plants will be on sale alongside a diversity of locally produced handicrafts.

Reynaldo Serracin, president of the Board of Trustees of the Fair said that this year the first accordion contest ‘Marcelino Guerra’ will be presented, on Thursday, January 18, 2018, on the stage of ‘Los Queztales’.

Rodrigo Marciaq, president of the Board’s Security and Tax Commission, said that 350 policemen. Will be on duty throughout the event.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/final-touches-boquete-flower-coffee-fair

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Authority abuse gets ex-tax collector jail time

Posted on January 2, 2018 in Panama

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LUIS CUCALÓN,  former   Director of Panama’s tax collecting authority (DGI) has been sentenced to two years in prison for abuse of authority to the detriment of the Digicel telephone company.

The Public  Ministry (MP)   said that Cucalón – took advantage of an abbreviated hearing and gained  a third reduction of the penalty, leaving 16 months to be served.

T he investigation began with a complaint filed by the current  Director General of Revenue in April, 2015, regarding a possible abuse of authority, over the seizing of property and real estate of  Digicel., in the amount of $141,592,827.05, says the MP.

Also in his capacity as director of the former ANIP, he ordered the arrest and detention of an executive of Digicel. without having the competence to do so.

Cucalón is awaiting trial in another case over  the theft of scores of millions of dollars involving  the ex-president Ricardo Martinelli and members of his inner circle.

He gained notoriety when supposedly in preventive detention, he spent two years in  Punta Pacific Hospital

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/ex-tax-collector-jailed