MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Eurnekian's home and business offices raided by the Argentine federal police

An outstanding businessman Eduardo Eurnekian, in his eighties, is gradually handing much of his responsibilities to his nephew Hugo and trusted top officials

Argentine federal police raided this week three addresses belonging to businessman Eduardo Eurnekian as part of an ongoing major investigation into public works contracts awards in exchange for money contributions.

The raids were carried out on orders of Judge Claudio Bonadío and included the home, in the posh district of San Isidro, of Eurnekian, the richest member of the Armenian community in Argentina, the offices of his Corporation America and those of Aeropuertos 2000, which has the concession of all major airports in Argentina, Carrasco in Uruguay, and a couple in Italy.

In the three addresses members of the police and judiciary were looking for information possibly related to the notebooks of a former driver of Roberto Baratta, one of ex president Cristina Fernandez ministers, who routinely registered time and places his boss ordered him to visit as part of the daily collection of illicit funds.

Eurnekian has always been in good relations with the ruling administrations in Argentina, and his name/and/or address allegedly cropped up on several occasions in the notebooks, during the governments of both Nestor Kirchner and his wife Cristina Fernandez.

Last August, the nephew of Eurnekian, Hugo Eurnekian who is head of the energy projects of Corporacion America confessed to have given funds for an election campaign to Baratta, the trusted officer of ex minister Julio de Vido, the right hand man of the Kirchners since they started their political career in Santa Cruz province.

“Hugo Eurnekian voluntarily presented himself to the court of Judge Claudio Bonadío to clarify his situation given that his home address appeared in the driver's 'notebooks'”, the Corporacion America announced at the time in a public release.

The name of Eduardo Eurnekian has been added to the list of the cream of the cream of leading Argentine businessmen involved in public works contracts investigation, among which is Pablo Rocca, CEO of Argentine multinational Techint, probably the strongest Argentine-Italian group in the country.

Eurnekian is also the benefactor of the Argentine military memorial at Darwin in the Falklands. He recently travelled to the Islands with a delegation of top Argentine industry and farming leaders to thank local authorities for their commitment to the humanitarian project of identifying the remains of Argentine combatants in unnamed graves. Eurnekian also funded the trip last March of some 200 relatives of the now dozens of graves which have a full name at the Argentine military cemetery.