Two men and a woman linked to Manuel Baldizón and a criminal structure that laundered money were convicted in a special procedure for accepting charges, within the Odebrecht corruption case.
The hearing took place in the High Risk Court D, led by Judge Abelina Cruz Toscano, where the three accused accepted charges and were sentenced through this special process.
Those convicted were Manuel León, former soccer player and former national soccer team; Luvia Edith Catalán and Pedro Vinicio Xalín.
Former soccer player Manuel Antonio León Sandoval was sentenced to six years in prison for the crime of illicit association, but because he accepted the charges, his sentence was reduced by half and he was left with a sentence of 3 years in prison, commutable at a rate of Q20 per day. . As dignified reparation, he must pay Q40,615.08.
Manuel León was also sentenced to 4 years in prison for the crime of ideological falsehood continuously and increased by a third. By accepting the charges, he is benefited and the sentence is 2 years in prison, commutable at a rate of Q20 per day.
Along with the former soccer player, Lubia Edith Catalán Espinosa was also convicted for the crime of ideological falsehood. She received a sentence of 2 years and having the benefit of having accepted the charges, the sentence is 1 year of prison commutable at a rate of Q20 per day. She must pay Q57,538.03 as decent reparation.
For the crime of illicit association, Catalán Espinosa received a sentence of 6 years in prison and reduced by half after accepting the charges, remaining at 3 years in prison commutable at a rate of Q20 per day.
Finally, she received the sentence for the crime of conspiracy to commit money laundering or other assets and received a sentence of 4 years in prison and for having accepted the charges, she was benefited and the sentence was 2 years in prison, commutable to ratio of Q20 daily.
Pedro Vinicio He must pay Q33,845.90 in terms of decent reparation.
For the crime of self-concealment, he was sentenced to 1 year in prison and due to the reduction due to the acceptance of charges, the sentence was reduced to 6 months at a rate of Q20 per day.
The three defendants have alternative measures and the High Risk D judge, Abelina Cruz Toscano, decided to leave them in the same legal situation.
The signs
The Special Prosecutor’s Office against Impunity (Feci), of the Public Ministry, indicated at the time that these people, and others who were captured on February 13, 2023, were part of the Baldizón structure either with the creation of off shore companies , or for being legal representatives of some companies, many of which were incorporated in a foreign country, in this case Panama, and the main beneficiary was the former presidential candidate.
He added that the funds that reached these companies finally reached Baldizón, who was a presidential candidate in Guatemala for the defunct Líder party.
The former candidate was included in the Engel List on May 18, 2019 and was only deported to the country on October 5, 2022, after serving a sentence in the United States for laundering drug trafficking money in a case in which he pleaded guilty. He had been captured in Miami, Florida in 2018.
The case
The Odebrecht case is one of the most representative of corruption in Latin America that affected Guatemala with the distribution of some US$31.95 million in bribes to politicians, businessmen and former officials of the government of the Patriotic Party (PP), of which the former minister of Communications, Alejandro Sinibaldi.
The Brazilian citizens Marcos de Cerqueira Lima Machado and Luiz Antonio Mameri, former directors of the Brazilian construction company Norberto Odebrecht, gave a statement in advance of evidence on September 8, 2017, providing details, amounts, names of former officials linked, the testimonies were given in the High Risk Court D.
It is important to highlight that the foreigners face prosecution in Brazil for their alleged involvement in the Lava Jato corruption case.
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