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Another corruption charge for ex president Cristina Fernandez: fraudulent import of liquid gas

Tuesday, March 19th 2019 - 09:05 UTC
Full article 5 comments
Among the 10 cases brought against Cristina Kirchner, the most notable is the “corruption notebooks”: she is accused of having received millions in bribes Among the 10 cases brought against Cristina Kirchner, the most notable is the “corruption notebooks”: she is accused of having received millions in bribes

Argentina's former president Cristina Kirchner was charged in yet another corruption investigation on Monday, in this case over the fraudulent import of liquid gas. Judge Claudio Bonadio, who Cristina Kirchner accuses of political persecution, requested that the ex-president be placed in pre-trial detention, but her partial immunity as a senator shields her from imprisonment.

Among the 10 cases brought against Cristina Kirchner, the most notable is the “corruption notebooks” scandal in which she is accused of having received tens of millions of dollars in bribes.

In that case, the prosecution claims that a total of 160 million Argentine Pesos in bribes were handed over between 2005 and 2015.

Center-left politician Cristina Kirchner was president for successive terms from 2007 to 2015, but her late husband Nestor preceded her in the top job.

She hopes to stand in October's presidential elections and is the closest rival to center-right president Mauricio Macri, according to polls.

Cristina Kirchner is currently in Cuba, where her daughter Florencia is receiving hospital treatment.

She will face trial for corruption in May in a case in which she is accused of having favored businessman Lazaro Baez in the attribution of 52 public works contracts worth 46 billion pesos (some US$1.2 billion) during her presidency.

Baez's BTP company secured large contracts in Santa Cruz province, where Nestor Kirchner served as governor for more than a decade, and continued to have influence when he left for Buenos Aires to become president.

Categories: Politics, Argentina.

Top Comments

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  • Idlehands

    Poor Cristina. She looks so innocent.

    Mar 19th, 2019 - 12:42 pm +1
  • Zaphod Beeblebrox

    “ Wow. Ten cases! Doesn't look impressive? Seeing the number, one would be tempted to conclude that some of them, at least, will end up in convictions.Well. No...”

    You are correct. However, I am not an expert in Argentine law, but doesn't there need to be sufficient evidence for a likely conviction before bringing a case? That evidence then gets checked during the legal process and the accused has an opportunity to provide an acceptable explanation for the presented evidence. The evidence and arguments are then judged and a verdict is reached beyond all reasonable doubt.

    “All those cases have fatal flaws...”

    Are you a legal expert qualified to judge that?

    “Cristina as a candidate with “10 open corruption cases.””

    Or to put it another way, there is enough evidence that a legal opinion has decided that there is a good chance of conviction against CFK in 10 cases.

    I've asked you this before but you have failed to answer: How exactly did CFK get so massively rich?

    Mar 20th, 2019 - 05:08 pm 0
  • Jack Bauer

    @ZB
    Yr question to EM : - “Are you a legal expert qualified to judge that?”

    Reekie will not answer....but I'd say he's been consulting with Terence Hill, aka Gollum....
    If he 'thinks' it, it must be the truth, and if you doubt his word you are a liar.....

    But yes, 10 cases....and Reekie believes they are ALL trumped-up charges....time will tell.

    Mar 22nd, 2019 - 05:54 pm 0
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