Four titular magistrates of the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE) who have an arrest warrant after being implicated in a case related to alleged anomalies in the purchase of a computer system will be made available to a judge, according to the lawyers’ defense.
These are magistrates Irma Palencia, Mynor Franco, Gabriel Aguilera and Rafael Rojas, who, at the request of the Public Ministry (MP) lost their immunity to be investigated for alleged irregularities in the purchase of the Transmission of Preliminary Electoral Results (TREP) system. , used in the 2023 general elections.
Lawyer César Calderón, defender of the magistrates, confirmed that they will appear before a court for the first statement hearing; However, he did not specify the date and indicated that it will be after April 20.
According to Calderón, the magistrates will appear before the Twelfth Criminal Court, which agreed to a request for voluntary presentation, but the arrest warrants remain in force.
The arrest warrants were issued after last November 30, deputies of the Congress of the Republic voted in favor of withdrawing the right of pre-trial to the magistrates, who are outside the country.
Process details
According to the Administrative Crimes Prosecutor’s Office, which received the complaint, it states that there are indications of possible illegalities in the purchase of the TREP, which is why it warrants that the four magistrates appear before a judge to clarify the facts.
The amount for the purchase of the system that was used in the first and second round votes last year had a cost of Q148 million.
The process against the TSE magistrates was stalled by a challenge raised by the MP against the first judge, which caused the file to be taken to a courtroom for several weeks.
The above prevented a memorial from the electoral officials from being known, who requested that instead of keeping an active arrest warrant active, they be summoned for a first statement hearing.
The challenge was accepted, but sources close to the officials have indicated that it has been repeatedly requested that the magistrates be summoned, which was achieved by the defense until this Thursday, March 7.
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