SANTO DOMINGO.-The hearing to determine pretrial detention measures against engineer Emmanuel Rivera Ledesma and six others involved in Operation Nido, carried out by the Public Prosecutor's Office, has been postponed until Tuesday at nine in the morning. They are accused of defrauding more than 300 people with fake real estate sales, in a scam exceeding RD$700 million.
Judge Rigoberto Sena of the Permanent Attention Services Office of the National District argued that the hearing was delayed so that the lawyers for the parties could review the document requesting a coercive measure.
Meanwhile, lawyer Eli Sepulveda, representing one of the plaintiffs, stated that there will be no further postponements at the next hearing, as the judge has indicated.
She complained that one of the accused, Escarlet Mercedes Cruz, is not in custody because she is breastfeeding.
Another lawyer, Jean Cristofel Pérez, who represents several plaintiffs, argued that, like this case, there are other construction companies that defraud people who are pursuing the dream of buying their own homes.
According to Magistrate Andrés Mena, of the Public Ministry, today another 30 people filed a formal complaint against the defendants.
Outside the Palace of Justice in Ciudad Nueva were some of those affected, who reiterated that they felt cheated by the scam, since many of them made that investment with sacrifice.
In the request for coercive measures, the prosecuting body states that the members of the organization obtained 485,619,386.90 pesos from financial institutions alone. It adds that many clients paid in cash.
Of the 300 people, only 147 have filed a formal complaint. Furthermore, he indicated that they have more than 200 pieces of evidence, including testimonial, expert, and financial evidence, among others.
Several of the people who intended to fulfill their dream of owning a home through the project offered to them were threatened and intimidated by Rivera Ledesma, who challenged them to go to court, certain that they would come out without achieving anything, according to the Public Prosecutor's Office.
In addition to Rivera Ledesma, the Public Prosecutor's Office accuses Emmanuel Eduardo Rivera Pichardo (son), María Gabriela Rivera Pichardo (daughter), Escarlet Mercedes Cruz Figueroa (Rivera Ledesma's wife), Reilin Arismendy Rosario García, Mirna Catalina Rivera Ledesma (sister) and Juan Omar Rosario López.
Also included are the legal entities Inmobiliaria & Diseños Arquitectónicos (Indisarq) and CRD Equipos Pesados, companies created by Ledesma Rivera. Also included are Grupo Wimar SRL and Auto Xperts AFM.
On Friday, the lawyers for the plaintiffs referred to Emmanuel Rivera Ledesma, the main defendant in the alleged fraud that was dismantled, as the "Real Estate Buttercup".
Criminal network
The Public Prosecutor's Office stated that the criminal network used the corporate vehicles Indisarq and SRL, CRD Equipos Pesados, SRL, through which they created a fraudulent real estate scheme to carry out scams, forgery, criminal association and money laundering to the detriment of the victims to whom they offered homes through nine real estate projects.
He added that during the investigation, evidence was seized demonstrating that the accused, Emmanuel Rivera Ledesma, used the names of well-known people to make the victims believe he was protected by individuals he didn't even know. He also indicated that evidence was gathered of the lavish lifestyles several members of the network enjoyed with the money obtained from the victims.
As a result of the investigation, the accused Rivera Ledesma initiated a series of maneuvers with the aim of preventing the victims from filing complaints against him or withdrawing those already filed.
With information from Diario Libre.
