Supplier News
Panama – Panama’s former President to appear in court over Lucky Games scandal
By Phil - 29 July 2015
Ex President Ernesto Perez Balladares will have to appear in court again to defend himself against corruption scandals linked to the gaming industry.
Ernesto Pérez Balladares recently announced that he would stand for re-election as presidential candidate for the PRD Party for the Presidential election in 2019. Although his lawyers claim that the charges are without ground, if a court finds him guilty of the charges, he would face from 5 to 12 years in prison which would be enough to disqualify him the presidential race, according to Article 180 of the Panamanian Constitution.
The scandal dates back to 2009 when the Attorney General accused the former president of favouring a number of gambling companies when he privatised the casinos in Panama in the late 1990’s. In January 2010, he was placed under house arrest over accusations that he accepted money from Lucky Games SA casino – the first arrest of a former Panamanian president. In April, the bank account of his company Shelf Holding Inc. was frozen, and Mr Balladares was required to hand over his passport. But the District Attorney announced in October 2010 that there was insufficient evidence to charge him with money laundering and the case was ultimately dropped.
However, the Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court has declared that the decision made by the lower court in 2011 is declared as void. Judge Abel Zamorano, ruled in a resolution issued on July 10, that the Second Criminal Court should re-examine the case. The decision was based on the fact that the original judge may have made a mistake in his ruling as he was insufficiently familiar with the case.
The charges come on the heels of news that son of former President of Panama Ricardo Martinelli Linares, is being investigated by the Anti-Corruption Prosecutors office over alleged links with gaming company Global Investment Group (GIM) which operates a televised bingo game called Buko Millonario. The investigation comes after an anonymous tip off was filed with the prosecutor’s which revealed alleged links with the company Grupo de Inversión Mundial (GIM).
