SANTO DOMINGO - Danilo Medina is mentioned 90 times, five of his brothers are implicated for having "abusively" taken advantage of their relative's position to embezzle public funds, a baseball player, senators, a congresswoman and several officials of the Medina government are involved and some are cited by name, in the voluminous 3,345-page Operation Anti-Octopus file presented yesterday by the Specialized Prosecutor's Office for the Prosecution of Administrative Corruption (PEPCA).
Because it is a matter of national interest, El Inmobiliario prepared a summary containing several reviews from national newspapers, where some of the main names involved in the case are cited.
FORMER PRESIDENT DANILO MEDINA MENTIONED 90 TIMES
The name of the former president of the Republic, Danilo Medina Sánchez, is mentioned 90 times in the Public Ministry file against the defendants in the Antipulpo case, which includes the former president's brothers, accused of embezzling billions of pesos from the State.
The vast majority of the references to the former president in the indictment stem from family ties or the historical context in which the alleged crimes took place. The indictment also states that Alexis Medina Sánchez's rise to power was due to "actions and omissions of the nation's chief executive, Danilo Medina Sánchez." Furthermore, it alleges that Danilo Medina's 2016 reelection campaign received funds of purportedly illicit origin through the Tornado Fuerzas Vivas Foundation and the Office of Supervising Engineers of State Works.
THE MEDINA SÁNCHEZ FAMILY; FROM THE PRESIDENCY TO THE MAIN SUSPECTS OF CORRUPTION IN THE ANTI-OCULP CASE
The eight years that Danilo Medina spent in government through the Dominican Liberation Party ( PLD ) were well used by the former president's family members to, allegedly, acquire a great fortune through a corruption network orchestrated by his brother Juan Alexis Medina.
at least R D$78,110,000 from 2007 to 2020 for political campaigns.
JUDGE ASSIGNED TO THE CASE
Yesterday, Judge Deiby Timoteo Peguero Jiménez was selected to preside over the preliminary hearing in the Operation Anti-Octopus corruption case. The selection was made through an electronic lottery, and the court that will handle the case is the Seventh Court of Instruction of the National District. This judge's role will be to examine the evidence presented by the Public Prosecutor's Office and the evidence presented by the defense, in order to decide whether the case will proceed to trial, which is the stage where guilt or innocence is determined.
THE WAY IT AFFECTED THE COUNTRY'S PUBLIC HEALTH
According to the Public Prosecutor's Office, Alexis Medina committed several crimes during the "emergency" raids on 56 hospitals. The alleged criminal network affected several fundamental systems in the country, such as the public health system, according to the indictment presented by the Public Prosecutor's Office.
He says that Alexis Medina Sánchez benefited and carried out illicit acts by taking advantage of the situation of declaring "emergency" that the then head of state, his brother Danilo Medina Sánchez, made to simultaneously intervene in 56 hospitals in the country.
MORE THAN RD$922 MILLION WAS PAID OUT DURING TRANSITION
Former Finance Minister Donald Guerrero arranged payments of more than RD$922 million to the company Domedical Supply SRL during the transition process of the 2020 presidential elections, according to the indictment in the Antipulpo case, presented by the Public Prosecutor's Office.
The 3,345-page file details how bidding processes declared as urgent were carried out without meeting the requirements and were carried out through fraudulent maneuvers using false qualities, adulterated documents, overvalued high-cost medicines, false delivery notes, medicines paid for but not delivered, overvalued equipment, and equipment of a lower quality than that contracted and paid for by the State.
COMPANIES MENTIONED
Some of the companies include Domedical Supply SRL, Fuel American Inc. Dominicana SRL, General Supply Corporations SRL, General Medical Solution, AM, SRL, Kyanred Supply SRL, Suim Suplidores Institucionales Méndez SRL, United Suppliers Corporations SRL, Wattmax Dominicana SRL, Wmi International, SRL, Acorpor, SRL, Wonder Island Park, SRL, Centro de Medicina Reproductiva Integral y Atención Femenina (CEMERAF), SRL, Ichor Oil, SRL, Editorama, SAS, Globus Electrical, SRL, Contratas Solution Services CSS, SRL, Constructora Alcantara Bobea (CONALBO), SRL, R&T Construcciones e Inversiones, SRL, Proyectos Engineering & Construction Pic, SRL, Reivasapt Investment, SRL, Suhold Transporte y Logística, SRL, and Editorama SA.
ALEXIS MEDINA AND GÓMEZ CASANOVA "BLOCKED" SAMMY SOSA'S BUSINESS
The name of former Major League Baseball player Samuel Peralta Sosa, better known as Sammy Sosa, is mentioned at least 95 times in the indictment against the defendants in Operation Antipulpo, whose main leader is Alexis Medina Sánchez.
Former Major League Baseball superstar Samuel Sosa, implicated in the alleged network known as the Antipulpo , used the influence that Alexis Medina Sánchez had in the past government to enter the Asphalt Cement ( AC-30 ) business.
This is established by the Public Prosecutor's Office in the file delivered to the court in the case of those involved in Operation Anti-Octopus, an alleged corruption network involving the theft of thousands of thousands of pesos from the public treasury.
He points out that to start the business, Sosa brought the ship Iver Agile to the Dominican Republic from the port of Gibraltar, but faced with the difficulties in obtaining a port, he turned to Alexis Medina, whom he knew from political activities and knew liked to use his status as the brother of President Danilo Medina
"As a result of the influence peddling that the accused, Juan Alexis Medina Sánchez, actively and successfully practiced, it was very effective, since through his necessary collaboration it was possible to get the then director of the Dominican Port Authority (APORDOM), Víctor Gómez Casanova, to help him locate a port," the document states.
EDEESTE TOO
Since the appointment of Luis Ernesto de León Núñez, brother-in-law of former president Danilo Medina, as General Administrator of the Eastern Electricity Distribution Company (EDEESTE) on August 17, 2012, that institution acted as an organized crime network that operated until 2020 as if "it were a fiefdom led by some of the members of the Medina Sánchez Clan.".
De León Núñez, husband of Magaly Medina Sánchez and appointed by Danilo Medina under decree 642-12, is not detained for this case, but is being investigated according to the document, since “he served as a platform for the accused Juan Alexis Medina Sánchez, Julián Esteban Suriel Suazo, Wacal Vernavel Méndez Pineda and Domingo Antonio Santiago Muñoz, to be awarded fifteen (15) illegal purchase processes, contracts to the detriment of public funds, which, as administrator, Luis Ernesto de León Núñez had the duty to safeguard.”.
KAREN RICARDO
Karen Ricardo, who was a candidate for deputy for Santo Domingo East in 2016, according to the Public Ministry, received through check 001106, from General Supply Corporation SRL, dated 24-02-2016, in the name of Francisco Batista, the sum of RD $200,000.00, “for the concept of contribution Publicity Karen Ricardo, which was signed by the accused Julián Esteban Suriel Suazo, requested by Gersom Recio and authorized by the accused Wacal Vernavel Méndez Pineda.”.
Similarly, on May 14, 2016, check 001846 was issued by General Supply Corporation SRL, in the name of Ismael Guzmán Castillo, for RD$625,000.00, for the concept of “logistics and transportation of personnel for advertising project activity 2016”, which was signed by the accused Julián Esteban Suriel Suazo.
“The attached list of the aforementioned check included various names with amounts in the name of Karen Ricardo, totaling 200,000,” the file states.
The file indicates that from the company General Supply Corporation SRL alone, from January 15, 2016 to January 24, 2017, a total of RD$33,610,666.15 was produced for placement and investment in the so-called “Advertising Project 2016”, an amount that was paid through various checks, whose funds came from the acts of corruption by the defendants in different public institutions.
JULIO CÉSAR VALENTÍN
The Public Prosecutor's Office will present as evidence in the trial against those involved in the AntiPulpo case, a copy of check 000577 from Domedical Supply SRL dated September 19, 2019 with payment request 74. Banreservas voucher 370864579 and another copy of the check with a handwritten note that says "Senator Valentín".
According to the file, this will prove that a check was issued from this company to Víctor Kelin Santiago German Santiago, for RD $2,004,000.00, under the concept of advertising, signed by the defendants José Dolores Santana Carmona and Rafael Leónidas De Oleo, requested by the defendant Carlos José Alarcón Veras and authorized by the defendant Wacal Vernavel Méndez.
According to the file, this check has a handwritten note in blue pen that reads: “Note: Senator Valentín and number 001-0776599-2.”.
SENATOR OF SANTIAGO RODRÍGUEZ
Likewise, the Public Prosecutor's Office has as evidence a copy of check 000829 from General Supply Corporation SRL dated January 15, 2016, with a check request booklet; with which they intend to prove that a copy of the check was issued from that company to Francisco Batista, for RD$200,000.00, as a collaboration.
“Which was signed by the accused Julián Esteban Suriel Suazo, requested by Gersom Recio, also that the reason for it was a collaboration to the Senator of Santiago Rodríguez,” the file indicates.
SENATOR RUBEN TOYOTA
Another check issued through Domedical Supply SRL was check 000568 dated September 17th in the name of Víctor Kelin Santiago Germán, for an amount of RD $1,829,202.00, for advertising purposes.
This check was signed by the defendants José Dolores Santana Carmona and Rafael Leónidas de Oleo, requested by Carlos José Alarcón Veras and authorized by the defendant Wacal Vernavel Méndez.
“It has a note that states “contribution Senator Rubén Toyota”,” the file says.
A TELEMICRO GROUP COMPANY ILLEGALLY FINANCED DANILO MEDINA'S
The document states that the Office of Supervising Engineers of State Works (OISOE) "served as an instrument for the illicit financing of political campaigns," and that the institution received millions of dollars from companies seeking to contribute to the candidacies of the Dominican Liberation Party in order to continue receiving government contracts. This was the case with contributions made by one of the companies in the Telemicro Group, of which Ramón Rafael Reynoso Gómez and Ramón Andrés Gómez Gómez are members.
Specifically, the indictment has images of two checks, numbers 000725 and 000726, signed by Mr. Ramón Andrés Gómez Gómez, who, in questioning by the Public Ministry, indicated that these checks were issued "as a contribution to the campaign of the government of the Dominican Liberation Party (PLD) of two thousand sixteen (2016), which was for the re-election of President Danilo Medina Sánchez.".
The checks in question were made out to the company Andrea & Camila Materiales y Construcciones SRL, and were deposited into an account in the name of the company Doutaglisa Investmens SRL .
Sources: Diario Libre , Acento, Listín Diario, Hoy, Ng Digital.
