Former President of Congress Pedro Muadi and other 30 defendants are bound over for trial

STATEMENT 054 | Photo: Publinews.

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The Judge of the Eleventh Criminal Court, José Eduardo Cojulum, resolved today to bound over for trial former congressman and president of Congress, Pedro Muadi Menéndez, and other 30 people accused of integrating a network that created phony jobs in that institution.

After six days of the intermediate hearing, the judge established that there is enough evidence for the defendants to stand trial for the following charges:

• Pedro Muadi Menéndez, money laundering, embezzlement, and conspiracy.
• Ximena Toriello Martínez, money laundering.
• Héctor Augusto Reyes Gómez, money laundering. 
• Axel Estuardo Pérez y Pérez, money laundering.
• Ana Lucía Reyes Bolaños, conspiracy.
• Bertha del Rosario Gil Serrano, conspiracy.
• Jennifer Ana Bertha Ruano Gil, embezzlement and conspiracy.
• Rony David Ruano Gil, embezzlement and conspiracy.

Embezzlement:

• Pedro Federico Gómez Amezquita.
• César Augusto Soto Pérez. 
• Carlos William Gallina Cay. 
• Cinthia Amalia CórdovaMancilla. 
• Juan Carlos Porras Celis. 
• Zaid Solimar Díaz Rivas. 
• Eulalia Lilian Herrera Mérida. 
• Rosa Esmeralda Oliva Toj.
• Mario Gilberto de León Gil.
• Germán EstuardoRalón Hernández.
• Edgar Alexander Quiñónez.
• Eder Bladimir Blanco Martínez.
• Amílcar José BracamonteChilín.
• Edna Patricia Guillén Cardona. 
• Sandra Guerrero López.
• José Rolando Cuyún Molina.
• Yuri Francisco Arenas Cruz.
• Bernardo Gamaliel Barrios Miranda.
• William Benjamín Castellanos Sandoval. 
• Ana Gabriel del Carmen Saravia.
• Wilfredo Amadilio Pérez.
• Silvia Valdez Prado.
• Alejandra Bracamonte de Ruano.

Five of the defendants will continue in prison, including the former member of Congress, Mr. Muadi Menéndez; while the rest are ordered alternative measures.

Background

The investigation established that between 2013 and 2015, Claudia Maria Bolaños Morales (sentenced), who worked as administrator of the company ProductosServicios y Equipos, S.A., property of the former congressman Pedro Muadi Menéndez, had her signature registered in 30 accounts in the name of Congress workers who earned salaries from Q7 thousand to Q20 thousand. These workers were appointed as executive secretaries, administrative assistants, operative technicians, and parliamentary guards. However, they did not go to work in Congress.

These salaries were deposited as payroll to these banking accounts, and Bolaños Morales later issued checks to be deposited to Muadi Menendez’s accounts. A total of Q2,927,139.45 were deposited in Muadi’s company account. Other stolen funds were deposited to other accounts that belonged to Congressman Muadi and several of his trusted workers, among them, Ximena Toriello Martínez del Rosal, private secretary of the presidency of the Congress in 2013.

On June 7, 2016, Claudia Maria Bolaños Morales and José Estuardo Aguilar, Muadi’s collaborators, were sentenced to 17 and 11 years in prison, respectively.