Colombia
The prosecutor delegated before the judges of the Bogotá circuit, Angélica Monsalve, summoned three members of the powerful Ríos family to be charged because, in their opinion, they committed a crime.
According to prosecutor Monsalve, Carlos Mario and Francisco Ríos Velilla are the real owners of the company that was left with the multimillionaire concession of the collection of TransMilenio. The tender was brought forward while Ríos Velilla’s nephew, Felipe Ríos, was a Bogotá councilman. Which, presumably, is a criminal conduct typified in the Penal Code.
About the Angelica Monsalve case:
Felipe Ríos is the son of Alberto Ríos Velilla, known as the ‘garbage czar and electric power companies’ in various regions of Colombia. A character very close to Germán Vargas Lleras and influential, not only because of his large fortune, but also because he shares his life with the renowned journalist Darcy Quinn and has undeniable closeness with other powerful communicators.
Given the accusation against his son, Alberto Ríos contacted Néstor Humberto Martínez and he contacted Rodrigo Noguera, rector of the Sergio Arboleda University, who is close to the prosecutor Angélica Monsalve.
The purpose of this influential summit was get the prosecutor not to charge Felipe Ríos.
She replied that, in law, had no other way than to continue with the imputation of charges. A week after her response, she received a resolution transferring it to Putumayo.
Until now, we had only known documents and the version of the prosecutor Angélica Monsalvebut today, in El Reporte Coronell, we will begin to reveal the recordings that support the existence of this alleged influence peddling.
The recordings of prosecutor Monsalve
On the first recording Prosecutor Monsalve and the rector of the Sergio Arboleda University speakwith whom he is friends. She initially thinks that Noguera finds it reprehensible that they are trying to pressure her and act outside the process.
When the prosecutor tells her interlocutor that she cannot give in to influence peddling, Rector Noguera tells him that what Néstor Humberto is doing is legitimate, that he would do the same and not be “ri-dí-cu-la”. Thus, separated by syllables.
When prosecutor Monsalve asks why the Ríoses do not defend themselves rather with lawyers within the process, Noguera replies that she doesn’t know how society works.
At some point, the rector, noticeably annoyed by the firmness of prosecutor Monsalve, use the expression “güevón”.
I ask you to listen carefully to the conversation. The last sentence is pronounced by the prosecutor and is eloquent enough: “Gross!”she says.
- Angelica Monsalve: They believe that it is that you influence me so that I decide. They are crazy. So they come here to see if you what.
- Rodrigo Noguera: No, but if I told you, I would do the same. The case of Nestor Humberto. Listen, Néstor Humberto is a friend of so-and-so that he is a prosecutor. And he tells the guy: he’s so-and-so because he doesn’t help me with that… I would too, I imagine you would too. I am the prosecutor and you need: “Hey help me that guy” Or not?
- AM: No, that’s influence peddling.
- RN: No, that’s not influence peddling.
- AM: Why? You have to go to the prosecutor so that the prosecutor of the case resolves. I am the main prosecutor, why didn’t you go talk to me? Or through the legal process.
- RN: Do not be ridiculous.
- AM: Ah.
- RN: Put. Do the reconstruction of things. I am a third party that I do not know, the prosecutor is Pedro Pataquiva. I have a friend. I don’t know Pedro Pataquiva, but I know that you are a friend of Pedro Pataquiva. “Hey Angélica, look, this is Pedro Pataquiva so that your friend doesn’t screw him up, he’ll see what you can do”. Or not?
- AM: So you would have done the same as Néstor Humberto Martínez, to help a friend?
- RN: Well, if I am a friend of the person, how do I do it? How else do I do? Or simply: “I can’t help you”.
- AM: Well, how else do you do it? He has to defend himself in court in court, with a lawyer, decently, or not?
- RN: You are not wrong. Then you don’t know the society and the world. When a person is going to make a decision, he has several alternatives. One, two and three, yes?
- AM: Yes.
- RN: Then it turns out that the guy doesn’t know the case very well, so he picks up and studies it. The guy says that 2 and 2 are 5, I do think I’m going this way. But if I have the opportunity to tell him “hey, 2 and 2 are not 5, don’t be a jerk, they are 4”. See which one you choose.
- AM: What that…
- RN: That’s life. That’s life, every day that happens. “No, no, it’s that they are intriguing me so that I don’t do it”. No.
- AM: Gross.
After that conversation, on Monday, March 14, the day after the elections, Prosecutor Monsalve received the transfer order to Putumayo. She perceives it as a punishment for having accused the powerful Ríos lords, and especially Felipe Ríos, Alberto’s son.
The conversation that you are going to hear takes place on Friday, March 18, and the prosecutor Angélica Monsalve, the rector Rodrigo Noguera, who has conveniently begun to forget what he held so strongly in the previous dialogue.
There is a third person in the conversation. She is the daughter of the rector, Catherine Noguera, who was, until some time ago, director of Forfeiture of Assets of the Francisco Barbosa Prosecutor’s Office. Noguera left office in the midst of a scandal that goes through the capture of some of his cousins accused of drug trafficking.
In this conversation the name of Darcy Quinn comes up who, according to what Rector Noguera told prosecutor Monsalve, was supposedly the one who wrote a document in favor of Felipe Ríosthe son of Alberto Rios.
Rector Noguera received that role from Alberto Ríos and Néstor Humberto Martínezand handed it over the same day to prosecutor Angélica Monsalve, with whom he speaks here after his transfer order.
- Angelica Monsalve: Horrible. Rodrigo as you are leaving, he left you. Have a good weekend, good bridge.
- Rodrigo Noguera: So what about yours?
- AM: Well there I am. Expect them to do what they want. What can I tell you?
- RN: Today is 18, right?
- AM: Today is 18…Yes, today is 18.
- Catalina Noguera: So he has a pod next week, so I have to talk to him. And the client, do you remember that I told you about the lawsuit that I brought him forward? He is a friend of his and had just invited him this weekend to Villa de Leyva
- Angelica Monsalve: Where are you going? For Villa de Leyva.
- CN: Yes, but then Antonio has a party. It is that I have crossed Antonio, Antonio has two parties.
- AM: Instead, I’m going to dedicate myself to doing this because your dad was helping me with, with who? Rodrigo, what is the lawyer’s name? The…
- Rodrigo Noguera: Jose Maria.
- AM: José María for the resource.
- CN: Oh yes, José María is very good at that.
- AM: No, if he already gave me the phone. And it was, your dad doesn’t even remember when he had breakfast.
- CN: Daddy, Monday eight days ago.
- RN: With whom?
- CN: With Nestor Humberto. You had it written down in the agenda. See last week’s schedule
- RN: Last week is that 7?
- CN: Yeah, that was like 7.
- AM: yes, the 7
- CN: Last week or the day before but it was Monday
- AM: And that he came with another who was Alberto…
- RN: (Inaudible)
- CN: He managed to come because he left you some leaves. hmm
- RN: Well because it is…
- AM: And that he came with Alberto Ríos Velilla and he doesn’t even remember.
- CN: The one on Tuesday was bad for us, but the one on Monday
- RN: Monday 7
- CN: Yes, it was breakfast, he left you some leaves there, which is what Darcy Quinn did to give Angelica.
- AM: Exactly. And he doesn’t remember that Alberto Ríos Velilla also came, that he has it written down there on the agenda.
- CN: But it was that same day, yes. Before you came along, yeah
- AM: I did not come that day
- CN: No, but of course, in the afternoon you were there, which was when you told him no, I don’t know what. that was the same day
- AM: Yes, no, that…
- CN: And then
- AM: That I told him that there was no possibility of anything
- CN: They talked to Néstor Humberto so that you could come in the afternoon, but you couldn’t. So she postponed Tuesday’s. That’s why my dad also had it written down Tuesday. And then Néstor Humberto agreed to come the day before yesterday morning when I told you he was coming, but finally Néstor Humberto didn’t come.
- AM: oh exactly
- CN: Yes of course. I have everything here on the cassette, don’t worry
- AM: And I didn’t want to meet him, either.
- CN: Yes, but come this morning…
The document attributed to Darcy Quinn is a folio poorly reasoned in legal matters.
The most serious aspect of the matter is not the alleged participation of the journalist in the preparation of the paper, that otherwise she denies. In the context of the case, the authorship of that sheet that is the least important.
What is truly serious is the alleged influence peddling in which Alberto Ríos Velilla, Néstor Humberto Martínez and Rodrigo Noguera Calderón participated. Influence peddling that also has the goal of obstructing the application of justice.
Such possible criminal conduct is reaffirmed in the mouth of the rector’s daughter, Catalina Noguerawho recapitulates the facts by speaking with his father Rodrigo Noguera and with the prosecutor Angélica Monsalve.
- Angelica Monsalve: That your dad doesn’t even remember. she had me scared
- Catalina Noguera: What happens is that my dad walks around with so much stuff, he has so much stuff
- Rodrigo Noguera: But what or what? What do I have to remember or what?
- CN: That Néstor Humberto came to talk to you about the Díaz Velilla case so that you would intercede with Angélica and Felipe Ríos would not be charged in the case of Recaudo Bogotá, but as Angélica explained to you, you cannot turn a blind eye because it is obvious and the test is very strong with that.
- RN: But they changed her case
- CN: No, which one changed the case? They sent her to Firavitoba. To Putumayo. They sent her to Putumayo.
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Yes, they sent her to Putumayo.
Yesterday the Prosecutor’s Office produced two communications on the case: a press release, which is a piece of paper without any legal force, where ratifies that prosecutor Angélica Monsalve must go to Putumayo for “service needs” and an email from the administrative director where she says that An appeal that the prosecutor filed against his transfer will be studied.
After the Prosecutor’s Office told Canal Caracol journalist Juan David Laverde that the case of the powerful Mr. Ríos would be distributed to eight prosecutors, the recent statement says that prosecutor Monsalve will continue with the process but from Putumayo.
Imagine if things are like this when the prosecutor is in Bogotá, how would it work if the accuser were in Putumayo?
A note of black humor from prosecutor Francisco Barbosa that deliberately uses transfers to punish decisions he doesn’t like… and sometimes, also to prevent them.