More than 20 prosecutors, assisted by more than 200 National Police officers, carried out 12 raids on members of a corruption network that defrauded SeNaSa of billions of pesos
SANTO DOMINGO. -The Public Prosecutor's Office Operation Cobra this weekend initiating a judicial process that seeks criminal sanctions and the confiscation of money stolen from public assets through the National Health Insurance ( SeNaSa ).
Santiago Marcelo F. Hazim Albainy, former director of SeNaSa, and seven other people have been arrested, accused of defrauding that public health risk administrator (ARS) of billions of pesos, while several individuals and legal entities continue under investigation with the purpose of bringing them to justice as the investigations of the prosecuting body progress.
A total of 25 prosecutors , assisted by more than 200 agents of the National Police, carried out 12 raids as part of the operation that also led to the arrest of Gustavo Enrique Messina Cruz, Germán Rafael Robles Quiñones, Francisco Iván Minaya Pérez, Eduardo Read Estrella, Cinty Acosta Sención, Ramón Alan Speakler Mateo and Ada Ledesma Ubiera.
Among other crimes, the group is charged with collusion of officials, prevarication, criminal association, bribery, fraud against the Dominican State, embezzlement, forgery, use of false documents and money laundering.
The Attorney General of the Dominican Republic, Yeni Berenice Reynoso , stated that the Public Ministry is making great efforts to ensure that those who have endangered the health of the population, especially affecting the most needy, pay for their actions and return to the Dominican State every peso stolen from public funds.
He recalled that the health risk administrator (ARS) SeNaSa belongs to everyone, so this is an infringement on a collective asset that impacts the constitutional right to health.
“The Public Prosecutor’s Office reiterates its unwavering commitment to fighting corruption. Those who have endangered public health, especially affecting the most vulnerable, will be held accountable for their crimes,” Reynoso said.
“Operation Cobra will see this case through to the end. We are making every effort to ensure that, in addition to criminal penalties, those responsible for defrauding all citizens also return to the Dominican State every single peso stolen from the public treasury,” he added.
The Public Prosecutor's Office has been able to gather evidence of large-scale bribery, falsification of financial statements, special programs without legal basis used to divert funds, fraudulent maneuvers, in short, a systematic corruption scheme installed by the Executive Director of SeNaSa, in collusion with officials of that ARS and with the participation, in criminal association, of health service providers, to the detriment of the Dominican State.
The actions of Operation Cobra are directed by Deputy Attorney General Wilson Camacho, head of the General Directorate of Prosecution of the Public Ministry, and Court Attorney Mirna Ortiz, of the Specialized Prosecutor's Office for the Prosecution of Administrative Corruption (Pepca), and a team of prosecutors expert in organized crime investigations participates.
