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        {"code":"26008","sect":"Central America","sect_slug":"central-america","hits":"4855","link":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/en\/202202\/centroamerica\/26008","link_edit":"","name":"Witness Accuses Guatemalan President of Funding Campaign with Construction Bribes","slug":"witness-accuses-guatemalan-president-of-funding-campaign-with-construction-bribes","info":"A sworn testimony claims that Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei negotiated a contribution of $2.6 million USD to his 2019 election campaign in exchange for keeping a minister from the prior administration in his post to continue operating a corruption network. A second source who worked on Giammattei\u2019s campaign confirmed the deal to El Faro. The FBI and U.S. State Department have copies of the testimony.","mtag":"Impunity","noun":{"html":"\u003Cspan class='tint-text--dark' data_href='\/user\/profile\/jlsanz'\u003E Jos\u00e9 Luis Sanz\u003C\/span\u003E","data":{"jose-luis-sanz":{"sort":"jlsanz","slug":"jose-luis-sanz","path":"jose_luis_sanz","name":"Jos\u00e9 Luis Sanz","edge":"0","init":"0"}}},"view":"4855","pict":{"cms-image-000037052-jpg":{"feat":"1","sort":"37052","name":"cms-image-000037052.jpg","link":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/images\/cms-image-000037052.jpg","path":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/images\/cms-image-000037052.jpg","back":"","slug":"cms-image-000037052-jpg","text":"&lt;p&gt;At 8:30 p.m. on Aug. 11, 2019, Alejandro Giammattei declared victory in the presidential elections. \"Guatemalans said no to the past and no to corruption,\" he said in a celebratory speech. In his campaign he promised to take a hard line against delinquency and on a promise to change the fight against corruption, leaving behind the defunct International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG). Photo: Carlos Barrera\/El Faro&lt;\/p&gt;","capt":"\u003Cp\u003EAt 8:30 p.m. on Aug. 11, 2019, Alejandro Giammattei declared victory in the presidential elections. \"Guatemalans said no to the past and no to corruption,\" he said in a celebratory speech. In his campaign he promised to take a hard line against delinquency and on a promise to change the fight against corruption, leaving behind the defunct International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG). Photo: Carlos Barrera\/El Faro\u003C\/p\u003E"},"cms-image-000037053-jpg":{"feat":"0","sort":"37053","name":"cms-image-000037053.jpg","link":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/images\/cms-image-000037053.jpg","path":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/images\/cms-image-000037053.jpg","back":"","slug":"cms-image-000037053-jpg","text":"&lt;p&gt;Former minister of communications, infrastructure, and housing in the Morales administration, Jos\u00e9 Luis Benito, heads to court at Tribunal Towers in Guatemala City on Jan. 28, 2022 for the first hearing in the corruption case known as Libramiento de Chimaltenango. Photo: Simone Dalmasso\/El Faro&lt;\/p&gt;","capt":"\u003Cp\u003EFormer minister of communications, infrastructure, and housing in the Morales administration, Jos\u00e9 Luis Benito, heads to court at Tribunal Towers in Guatemala City on Jan. 28, 2022 for the first hearing in the corruption case known as Libramiento de Chimaltenango. Photo: Simone Dalmasso\/El Faro\u003C\/p\u003E"},"cms-image-000037054-jpg":{"feat":"0","sort":"37054","name":"cms-image-000037054.jpg","link":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/images\/cms-image-000037054.jpg","path":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/images\/cms-image-000037054.jpg","back":"","slug":"cms-image-000037054-jpg","text":"&lt;p&gt;Document seized by the Public Prosecutor's Office in the home of Giorgio Bruni, former private secretary to President Alejandro Giammattei, detailing the alleged illicit campaign donations in return for public contracts. Photo: El Faro&lt;\/p&gt;","capt":"\u003Cp\u003EDocument seized by the Public Prosecutor's Office in the home of Giorgio Bruni, former private secretary to President Alejandro Giammattei, detailing the alleged illicit campaign donations in return for public contracts. Photo: El Faro\u003C\/p\u003E"},"cms-image-000037056-jpg":{"feat":"0","sort":"37056","name":"cms-image-000037056.jpg","link":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/images\/cms-image-000037056.jpg","path":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/images\/cms-image-000037056.jpg","back":"","slug":"cms-image-000037056-jpg","text":"&lt;p&gt;Page of the report by the Public Prosecutor's Office after conducting its October 2020 raid on a home in Antigua Guatemala. During the operation, prosecutors found 22 suitcases of cash totaling more than $16 million USD. Photo: El Faro&lt;\/p&gt;","capt":"\u003Cp\u003EPage of the report by the Public Prosecutor's Office after conducting its October 2020 raid on a home in Antigua Guatemala. During the operation, prosecutors found 22 suitcases of cash totaling more than $16 million USD. Photo: El Faro\u003C\/p\u003E"},"cms-image-000037057-jpg":{"feat":"0","sort":"37057","name":"cms-image-000037057.jpg","link":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/images\/cms-image-000037057.jpg","path":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/images\/cms-image-000037057.jpg","back":"","slug":"cms-image-000037057-jpg","text":"&lt;p&gt;Page of the report by the Public Prosecutor's Office after conducting its October 2020 raid on a home in Antigua Guatemala. During the operation, prosecutors found 22 suitcases of cash totaling more than $16 million USD. Photo: El Faro&lt;\/p&gt;","capt":"\u003Cp\u003EPage of the report by the Public Prosecutor's Office after conducting its October 2020 raid on a home in Antigua Guatemala. During the operation, prosecutors found 22 suitcases of cash totaling more than $16 million USD. Photo: El Faro\u003C\/p\u003E"},"cms-image-000037058-jpg":{"feat":"0","sort":"37058","name":"cms-image-000037058.jpg","link":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/images\/cms-image-000037058.jpg","path":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/images\/cms-image-000037058.jpg","back":"","slug":"cms-image-000037058-jpg","text":"&lt;p&gt;Copy of the memo sent by the head of the FECI, Rafael Curruchiche, on Aug. 25, 2021 demanding that his personnel inform him of any investigation into cash payments to President Alejandro Giammattei. Photo: El Faro&lt;\/p&gt;","capt":"\u003Cp\u003ECopy of the memo sent by the head of the FECI, Rafael Curruchiche, on Aug. 25, 2021 demanding that his personnel inform him of any investigation into cash payments to President Alejandro Giammattei. Photo: El Faro\u003C\/p\u003E"},"cms-image-000037059-jpg":{"feat":"0","sort":"37059","name":"cms-image-000037059.jpg","link":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/images\/cms-image-000037059.jpg","path":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/images\/cms-image-000037059.jpg","back":"","slug":"cms-image-000037059-jpg","text":"&lt;p&gt;Images taken from a police report on surveillance conducted in July 2021 that documented the delivery of money from construction magnate Alejandro Matheu Escamilla to the former Communications Minister Alejandro Sinibaldi. Photo: El Faro&lt;\/p&gt;","capt":"\u003Cp\u003EImages taken from a police report on surveillance conducted in July 2021 that documented the delivery of money from construction magnate Alejandro Matheu Escamilla to the former Communications Minister Alejandro Sinibaldi. Photo: El Faro\u003C\/p\u003E"}},"pict_main__sort":37052,"date":{"live":"2022\/02\/14"},"data_post_dateLive_YY":"2022","data_post_dateLive_MM":"02","data_post_dateLive_DD":"14","text":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\"\/es\/202202\/centroamerica\/25996\/%E2%80%8B%E2%80%8BTestigo-acusa-a-Giammattei-de-financiar-su-campa%C3%B1a-con-sobornos-de-constructoras.htm\"\u003E\u003Cem\u003ELeer en espa\u00f1ol\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe recording and the identity of the witness are stashed in a safe inside Guatemala\u2019s High-Risk Tribunal D, presided over by Judge Erika Aif\u00e1n. A former confidant of President Alejandro Giammattei \u2014 identified in court documents as \u201cWitness A\u201d \u2014 accused him of negotiating the delivery of 20 million quetzales ($2.6 million USD) in bribes from construction companies to finance his campaign in 2019. In exchange, according to the witness, Giammattei promised to keep then-Minister of Communications, Infrastructure, and Housing Jos\u00e9 Luis Benito in his post for a year in order to allow him to continue operating a multimillion-dollar corruption scheme of infrastructure projects.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EThe witness says that in July 2019, between the first and second rounds of the presidential elections, he attended a meeting in Guatemala City in which then-candidate Giammattei and Giorgio Bruni \u2014 who at the time was secretary of the president\u2019s party, Vamos, and later worked as Private Secretary of the Presidency \u2014 spoke by telephone with Benito to confirm the contribution and delivery method. In the presence of Ra\u00fal Romero, the current minister of development; Miguel Mart\u00ednez, one of Giammattei\u2019s closest collaborators; and another person identified only as Jorge, the witness claims to have heard Bruni tell Giammattei that the money would come from an up-front payment by the government to a private company for the development of a highway in the department of San Marcos.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EWitness A also says that they planned for police officers to deliver the campaign contribution: \u201cGiorgio Bruni says, on speakerphone, that Alejandro Giammattei was present and listening, and then asks Jos\u00e9 Luis Benito how the matter is coming along. Benito responds: \u2018Everything is ready. We\u2019re coordinating with the minister of governance\u2019 \u2014 who at the time was Enrique Degenhart \u2014 \u2018to make the delivery where you all indicate.\u2019\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EThe sealed declaration was recorded in a closed hearing in the presence of the judge, two prosecutors, and a defense lawyer on May 18, 2021. It was part of an ongoing investigation opened by the Special Prosecutor\u2019s Office against Impunity (FECI) in October 2020 after finding the equivalent of nearly $16 million USD in cash tucked in suitcases in a house in Antigua Guatemala rented by Benito. The discovery led to accusations of money laundering against Benito, as well as a criminal probe into Bruni\u2019s possible involvement.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E    \u003Cfigure class=\"pict pict_land pict_move_posc 0 cs_img cs_img--curr rule--ss_c\" data-shot=\"pict\" data-hint=\"pict\"\u003E \u003Cdiv class=\"pict__pobj text-overflow\"\u003E\u003Cimg src=https:\/\/elfaro.net\/get_img?ImageWidth=2000&ImageHeight=1269&ImageId=37057 class=\"pobj\" style=\"max-width: 100%\" rel=\"resizable\" alt=\"Page of the report by the Public Prosecutor's Office after conducting its October 2020 raid on a home in Antigua Guatemala. During the operation, prosecutors found 22 suitcases of cash totaling more than $16 million USD. Photo: El Faro\" \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E \u003Cfigcaption class=\"pict__text cs_img_caption folk_content typo_buttons line--ss_s0c line--ss_s0c--auto block full-width text-overflow rule--ss_l relative\"\u003E \u003Cdiv class=\"__content block-inline full-width align-top tint-text--idle relative\"\u003E Page of the report by the Public Prosecutor's Office after conducting its October 2020 raid on a home in Antigua Guatemala. During the operation, prosecutors found 22 suitcases of cash totaling more than $16 million USD. Photo: El Faro \u003C\/div\u003E \u003C\/figcaption\u003E \u003C\/figure\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003ETwelve highway construction projects worth more than $191 million USD are allegedly linked to this pact. Official documents show that 11 of them are underway and the last is accepting proposals. According to prosecutors, Benito and Giammattei agreed that the companies would receive advance payments or new contracts in exchange for the campaign contribution.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EA second source from Giammattei\u2019s campaign confirmed to El Faro the agreement with Benito and says he attended a meeting in late August 2019 where Bruni, Mart\u00ednez, and Giammattei, by then president-elect, \u201csaid that they involved construction companies through the Ministry of Communications to finance the campaign.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EOn various occasions in 2019, this source heard Bruni talk about the promise of including Benito in the incoming Giammattei administration. He says Giammattei himself said once that he \u201cmaintained the offer [for Benito] to stay on as minister of communications.\u201d As the inauguration approached, according to the source, discussions were held with Bruni due to Giammattei\u2019s intention to renege on his end of the bargain.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EIn the end Benito lost the position, but the agreement with the companies allegedly stayed the course. Seven of the infrastructure projects listed by Witness A, valued at more than $83 million USD, were awarded during the first year of the Giammattei administration to construction companies under suspicion of favoritism from the ex-minister. Chief among them is Supervisi\u00f3n, Construcci\u00f3n y Mantenimiento (SCM), owned by businessman Alejandro Matheu Escamilla, a close friend of Benito.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E    \u003Cfigure class=\"pict pict_land pict_move_posc 0 cs_img cs_img--curr rule--ss_c\" data-shot=\"pict\" data-hint=\"pict\"\u003E \u003Cdiv class=\"pict__pobj text-overflow\"\u003E\u003Cimg src=https:\/\/elfaro.net\/get_img?ImageWidth=2000&ImageHeight=1334&ImageId=37053 class=\"pobj\" style=\"max-width: 100%\" rel=\"resizable\" alt=\"Former minister of communications, infrastructure, and housing in the Morales administration, Jos\u00e9 Luis Benito, heads to court at Tribunal Towers in Guatemala City on Jan. 28, 2022 for the first hearing in the corruption case known as Libramiento de Chimaltenango. Photo: Simone Dalmasso\/El Faro\" \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E \u003Cfigcaption class=\"pict__text cs_img_caption folk_content typo_buttons line--ss_s0c line--ss_s0c--auto block full-width text-overflow rule--ss_l relative\"\u003E \u003Cdiv class=\"__content block-inline full-width align-top tint-text--idle relative\"\u003E Former minister of communications, infrastructure, and housing in the Morales administration, Jos\u00e9 Luis Benito, heads to court at Tribunal Towers in Guatemala City on Jan. 28, 2022 for the first hearing in the corruption case known as Libramiento de Chimaltenango. Photo: Simone Dalmasso\/El Faro \u003Cdiv class=\"photographer text_italic rule--ss_l tint-text--idle\"\u003E \u003C\/div\u003E \u003C\/div\u003E \u003C\/figcaption\u003E \u003C\/figure\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EEl Faro requested a response from President Giammattei to Witness A\u2019s allegations. On his behalf, the Secretary of Social Communication of the Presidency responded in writing that he \u201ccategorically rejects every unfounded allegation or supposition looking to tie the president with ex-ministers.\u201d He also deferred any responsibility to Giorgio Bruni: \u201cEverything related to the finances of the party Vamos corresponds to the party\u2019s secretary general during the campaign.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EAs for the alleged agreement with Benito, the spokesperson claimed that \u201cno ex-minister of the prior administration has been part of, nor has at any time been considered for, a position in President Alejandro Giammattei\u2019s administration.\u201d He added that the president \u201cis unaware of any investigation against him by the Public Prosecutor\u2019s Office, nor by any other entity of the same nature.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EBruni ignored messages and calls made to his personal phone. Ex-minister Benito responded, through an intermediary, that the case of the suitcases of money was sealed by the courts and therefore cannot comment.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EMinister of Development Romero, a former legislator with Giammattei\u2019s party, acknowledges that he supported the president\u2019s campaign but denies having attended the meeting described by Witness A. Former minister of governance Degenhart also denied the allegations. \u201cI categorically reject the testimony of that protected witness,\u201d he said. El Faro called and sent written messages to the personal phone of Miguel Mart\u00ednez but received no reply.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EBusinessman Alejandro Matheu Escamilla read but did not respond to messages, as well as calls, to his personal phone. El Faro also received no reply to a message at the offices of SCM.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EAre You Investigating the President?\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EThe U.S. State Department and FBI have had copies of the testimony for months. El Faro obtained the full recording from a source outside the Public Ministry and the court system. His voice was distorted during the hearing for protection, and this newspaper applied a second voice distortion before publication. El Faro knows the identity of the witness, confirmed his relationship with Giammattei, and verified the authenticity of the recording with three sources.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EThe New York Times briefly referenced the existence of Witness A last October in an \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2021\/08\/24\/world\/americas\/guatemala-corruption-migrants.html\"\u003Earticle\u003C\/a\u003E that revealed that another witness told FECI in July that it had delivered to Giammattei\u2019s house a rug rolled with cash inside. The cash was allegedly part of a bribe by a Russian-backed mining company for the rights to operate part of a Guatemalan port.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EIt\u2019s unclear which of the two testimonies weighed more in the removal of the head of FECI, Juan Francisco Sandoval on July 23. The same night that he left Guatemala for exile, Sandoval reported \u003Ca href=\"\/en\/202107\/centroamerica\/25626\/Interview-with-a-Former-Prosecutor-en-Route-to-Exile-%E2%80%9CI-can-now-say-that-everything-Porras-has-done-is-shady%E2%80%9D.htm\"\u003Ein an exclusive interview with El Faro\u003C\/a\u003E that one of the reasons for his removal was that the investigation of the money found in a house in Antigua led back to Giammattei and to \u201cpayments from contractors in order to benefit from some infrastructure project or to finance some political campaign.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EIn the ensuing months, Attorney General Consuelo Porras completely dismantled the team of prosecutors in charge of both investigations and has sought to obstruct them. By order of Porras on Aug. 25, the new head of the FECI, Jos\u00e9 Rafael Curruchiche, sent a memo to his entire office asking them officially \u201cif in your agency the instruction was given and an investigation was developed relating to the delivery of cash money to the constitutional president of the Republic of Guatemala.\u201d Prosecutors declined to respond on the legal grounds that the case was sealed.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E    \u003Cfigure class=\"pict pict_land pict_move_posc 0 cs_img cs_img--curr rule--ss_c\" data-shot=\"pict\" data-hint=\"pict\"\u003E \u003Cdiv class=\"pict__pobj text-overflow\"\u003E\u003Cimg src=https:\/\/elfaro.net\/get_img?ImageWidth=2000&ImageHeight=2203&ImageId=37058 class=\"pobj\" style=\"max-width: 100%\" rel=\"resizable\" alt=\"Copy of the memo sent by the head of the FECI, Rafael Curruchiche, on Aug. 25, 2021 demanding that his personnel inform him of any investigation into cash payments to President Alejandro Giammattei. Photo: El Faro\" \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E \u003Cfigcaption class=\"pict__text cs_img_caption folk_content typo_buttons line--ss_s0c line--ss_s0c--auto block full-width text-overflow rule--ss_l relative\"\u003E \u003Cdiv class=\"__content block-inline full-width align-top tint-text--idle relative\"\u003E Copy of the memo sent by the head of the FECI, Rafael Curruchiche, on Aug. 25, 2021 demanding that his personnel inform him of any investigation into cash payments to President Alejandro Giammattei. Photo: El Faro \u003C\/div\u003E \u003C\/figcaption\u003E \u003C\/figure\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003ELast November, the Public Prosecutor\u2019s Office officially asked Judge Erika Aif\u00e1n to submit the sealed envelope containing the identity of Witness A to the new prosecutors assigned to the case. The content of the request letter implies that the original prosecutors had refused to reveal the identity, shielded by legal protections for the May 18 hearing.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EIn a written response, Aif\u00e1n refused to turn over the information, explaining that the testimony is already part of a judicial process beyond the attorney general\u2019s control, and the recording and the identity of the witness are now evidence in the court\u2019s custody.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003ETwo months later, on Jan. 13, Porras asked the Supreme Court of Justice to remove the immunity from prosecution of Aif\u00e1n, one of the most widely-recognized anti-corruption and anti-drug trafficking judges in Guatemala. In 2018, she convicted nine construction magnates for participating in a bribery ring. For years has faced constant threats and legal harassment from actors tied to those in power. The current attorney general, who the U.S. State Department included on the Engel List for \u201c\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/www.state.gov\/united-states-announces-actions-against-seven-central-american-officials-for-undermining-democracy-and-obstructing-investigations-into-acts-of-corruption\/\"\u003Ea pattern of obstruction\u003C\/a\u003E of investigations into corruption,\u201d is accusing Aif\u00e1n of abuse of power and dereliction of duty.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EEl Faro requested an interview with Attorney General Porras through her chief press officer and sent written questions about advances in the case and efforts to obstruct the investigation. The Public Prosecutor\u2019s Office responded that the sealing of the case prohibited \u201cgoing into details,\u201d but once again lashed out against the prosecutors who opened the case: \u201cOne of the witnesses denounced coercion and pressure to bear testimony on matters of which they had no direct knowledge,\u201d stated Curruchiche, adding that Internal Affairs has an open investigation into the matter.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EIn Exchange for Contracts\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u201cGeorgio Bruni receives a call from Jos\u00e9 Luis Benito, who at the time was minister. I witnessed Bruni place his telephone on the table. He had the contact saved as \u2018Benito,\u2019 last name only. After he answers the call, [Bruni] puts it on speakerphone and I recognize [Benito\u2019s] voice,\u201d Witness A testified on May 18.\u00a0\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EGiammattei was seeking the presidency for the fourth time since 2007 and, though conservative Guatemalans\u2019 widespread repudiation of his opponent Sandra Torres played in his favor, she doubled the amount of votes he obtained in the first round of voting. He had called a campaign meeting to, in theory, talk about election fieldwork and the political support of mayors in the lead-up to the second round of voting on Aug. 11. The meeting, according to the testimony, took place in the Milenia apartment complex in the wealthy Colonia Oakland in Zone 10 of Guatemala City.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EMinister of Development Romero confirmed to El Faro that he has an apartment in Milenia, but denied that campaign meetings were held there, as prosecutors assert. He also claimed that Benito \u201chas or had\u201d an apartment in the same building.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EThe witness says that, after confirming that the deal remained on the table and that the Ministry of Governance (which oversees the National Civil Police) would coordinate the delivery of the money, Giammattei turned off the speakerphone and \u201cthanked [Benito], basically, for what he had just said.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u201cThe call is then disconnected and Alejandro Giammattei asks Giorgio Bruni what basically were the terms of our agreement, the 20 million [quetzales] for the second round. And Bruni answers, \u2018yes, you should remember that [the money] comes from an advance payment to the company COAMCO from a contract adjudicated in Guativil - San Marcos,\u2019\u201d states the witness. \u201cThen they emphasize: \u2018OK, everything is fine, please coordinate.\u2019\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E    \u003Cfigure class=\"pict pict_land pict_move_posc 0 cs_img cs_img--curr rule--ss_c\" data-shot=\"pict\" data-hint=\"pict\"\u003E \u003Cdiv class=\"pict__pobj text-overflow\"\u003E\u003Cimg src=https:\/\/elfaro.net\/get_img?ImageWidth=2000&ImageHeight=1333&ImageId=37052 class=\"pobj\" style=\"max-width: 100%\" rel=\"resizable\" alt=\"At 8:30 p.m. on Aug. 11, 2019, Alejandro Giammattei declared victory in the presidential elections. \"Guatemalans said no to the past and no to corruption,\" he said in a celebratory speech. In his campaign he promised to take a hard line against delinquency and on a promise to change the fight against corruption, leaving behind the defunct International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG). Photo: Carlos Barrera\/El Faro\" \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E \u003Cfigcaption class=\"pict__text cs_img_caption folk_content typo_buttons line--ss_s0c line--ss_s0c--auto block full-width text-overflow rule--ss_l relative\"\u003E \u003Cdiv class=\"__content block-inline full-width align-top tint-text--idle relative\"\u003E At 8:30 p.m. on Aug. 11, 2019, Alejandro Giammattei declared victory in the presidential elections. \"Guatemalans said no to the past and no to corruption,\" he said in a celebratory speech. In his campaign he promised to take a hard line against delinquency and on a promise to change the fight against corruption, leaving behind the defunct International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG). Photo: Carlos Barrera\/El Faro \u003Cdiv class=\"photographer text_italic rule--ss_l tint-text--idle\"\u003E \u003C\/div\u003E \u003C\/div\u003E \u003C\/figcaption\u003E \u003C\/figure\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/guatemala.gob.gt\/8672-2\/\"\u003EThe project was awarded\u003C\/a\u003E in December 2018 to COAMCO with a budget of $22.6 million USD, though the project would end up costing more than $27.1 million USD. According to the witness, COAMCO provided the money for Giammattei\u2019s campaign, on the condition that in the following years other advance payments and nine new contracts would be allotted to companies involved in Benito\u2019s network of favors.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u201cGiorgio Bruni reminds the president that the agreement with Jos\u00e9 Luis Benito was to allow him to stay on for a year as minister of communications in the administration of Alejandro Giammattei,\u201d declared Witness A. \u201cThe only reason was to guarantee the payment of contracts under his control (...). The most important and closest to that person [Benito] was the construction magnate Alejandro Matheu Escamilla.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003ESix of the contracts that the witness ties to the negotiation between Benito and Giammattei were awarded to the company SCM, owned by Matheu Escamilla. Three of them, totalling $42.5 million USD, were awarded during the current administration. The witness also mentions a construction project that is currently in licitation and that he alleges was promised to SCM.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EOf the remaining projects listed by the witness, two worth $12.8 million USD were awarded to JJRM, a company that in 2020 sparked a scandal when the press revealed that its legal representative was the cousin of a top official in the Ministry of Communications responsible for issuing public contracts to JJRM.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003ETwo others for almost $28 million USD were awarded to Prourba, a company \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/elperiodico.com.gt\/sociedad\/sucesos\/2021\/09\/30\/empresa-a-cargo-de-obra-en-ixcan-es-una-de-las-preferidas-del-gobierno\/\"\u003Enamed\u003C\/a\u003E in court statements in 2018 as a contractor that bribed Ministry of Communications officials in exchange for expediting payments.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EWitness A claims that both companies actually work for Matheu Escamilla. \u201cIt\u2019s common practice for construction companies to rent themselves to a businessman who has more political control at that moment,\u201d he testified, \u201cwhich is the case for JJRM and Prourba on behalf of Alejandro Matheu. And they operate for a percentage or partial payment of the project.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EThe legal representatives of COAMCO, JJRM, and Prourba denied any agreement with President Giammattei or Benito. \u201cIt\u2019s completely false. I don\u2019t even know the president,\u201d the representative of COAMCO, Juan Pablo Mansilla, told El Faro. The legal representative of JJRM, Luis Fernando Castro Gonz\u00e1lez, also denies any relationship: \u201cThere was never any agreement with the people you mention. That is false. It\u2019s slander.\u201d Both deny that their businesses donated to the campaign or have any ties to Alejandro Matheu Escamilla or his businesses. \u201cI don\u2019t even know who that is,\u201d said Castro Gonz\u00e1lez.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EBefore promptly hanging up, owner of Prourba Ricardo Bonilla Miyares told El Faro: \u201cYou are totally wrong. Please never call me again.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EBenito\u2019s Favorite Contractor\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EThe Guatemalan press has widely documented the close relationship between Jos\u00e9 Luis Benito and Alejandro Matheu Escamilla \u2014 who they dubbed \u201c\u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/elperiodico.com.gt\/noticias\/investigacion\/2021\/10\/18\/los-nuevos-negocios-del-constructor-favorito-de-benito\/\"\u003EJos\u00e9 Luis Benito\u2019s favorite contractor\u003C\/a\u003E\u201d \u2014 and the accumulation of contracts awarded, in many cases on dubious grounds, to Matheu\u2019s companies. In 2016, Matheu financed the presidential campaign of Jimmy Morales. In 2018 and 2019 alone, the two years that Benito ran the Ministry of Communications, SCM received nine contracts worth roughly $104 million USD. In the 11 preceding years, the firm obtained contracts worth $8.5 million USD.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EEl Faro obtained testimony given by Alejandro Sinibaldi, minister of communications from 2012 to 2014 during the administration of Otto P\u00e9rez Molina, saying that he received bribes from Matheu Escamilla. Sinibaldi, accused of multiple corruption charges, fled Guatemala for four years to evade arrest before his imprisonment in August 2020, and has since admitted in court to taking bribes from multiple construction firms.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u201cI had a relationship with Mr. Alejandro Matheu Escamilla, who delivered bribes to me when I was minister of communications, infrastructure, and housing,\u201d reads the affidavit.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003ESinibaldi also claims that at the end of 2020, Matheu Escamilla paid him a surprise visit in prison with two bottles of wine and offered him 4 million quetzales, supposedly to cover Sinibaldi\u2019s attorney costs. \u201cHe\u2019s looking to buy my silence,\u201d Sinibaldi testified, adding that Matheu Escamilla offered protection for his family through the private security firm BlackThorne, of which Matheu Escamilla claimed to hold shares. Sinibaldi interpreted the offer as a veiled threat.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EThe affidavit states that, after a second encounter with Matheu Escamilla in the first quarter of 2021, Sinibaldi alerted the FECI and feigned accepting bribes so that the prosecutors could document it. After Sinibaldi turned over a first delivery of 30,000 quetzales to prosecutors, police officers under the direction of the FECI tailed a deliveryman who, on a motorcycle owned by SCM, proceeded to deliver a new payment in a manila envelope to the home of one of the ex-minister\u2019s lawyers.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E    \u003Cfigure class=\"pict pict_land pict_move_posc 0 cs_img cs_img--curr rule--ss_c\" data-shot=\"pict\" data-hint=\"pict\"\u003E \u003Cdiv class=\"pict__pobj text-overflow\"\u003E\u003Cimg src=https:\/\/elfaro.net\/get_img?ImageWidth=2000&ImageHeight=940&ImageId=37059 class=\"pobj\" style=\"max-width: 100%\" rel=\"resizable\" alt=\"Images taken from a police report on surveillance conducted in July 2021 that documented the delivery of money from construction magnate Alejandro Matheu Escamilla to the former Communications Minister Alejandro Sinibaldi. Photo: El Faro\" \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E \u003Cfigcaption class=\"pict__text cs_img_caption folk_content typo_buttons line--ss_s0c line--ss_s0c--auto block full-width text-overflow rule--ss_l relative\"\u003E \u003Cdiv class=\"__content block-inline full-width align-top tint-text--idle relative\"\u003E Images taken from a police report on surveillance conducted in July 2021 that documented the delivery of money from construction magnate Alejandro Matheu Escamilla to the former Communications Minister Alejandro Sinibaldi. Photo: El Faro \u003C\/div\u003E \u003C\/figcaption\u003E \u003C\/figure\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003ESinibaldi\u2019s credibility as a witness has recently eroded because of the widely held suspicion that he reached an agreement with Attorney General Porras for benefits in exchange for making false accusations against the government\u2019s perceived adversaries. El Faro decided to publish his July 2021 declaration because it was given before the removal of Juan Francisco Sandoval, because of its coherence with his past testimony, and because of evidence and secondary testimonies that partially substantiate it.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003ESinibaldi\u2019s attorneys told El Faro on his behalf that he does not want to make public statements on the alleged bribes from Matheu Escamilla or on the fact that a corruption scheme like the one that he led extended to successive administrations. \u201cThe creators of the system of corruption are the construction firms,\u201d \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/nomada.gt\/pais\/entender-la-politica\/sinibaldi-ira-primero-contra-los-empresarios-que-lo-delataron\/\"\u003Ehe said while on trial in 2020\u003C\/a\u003E. \u201cThe politicians, the ministers, are just passing through.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ETurning Over Giammattei\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EThe investigation of the corruption scheme reported by Witness A was practically shuttered following Sandoval\u2019s departure from the FECI. \u201cThe investigation will get as far as they want it to,\u201d a source from the Public Prosecutor\u2019s Office told El Faro in September, in allusion to the iron grip that the attorney general and her team were exerting on the most damning cases against the Giammattei administration.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003ESandoval agrees: \u201cWhat real room for action does the FECI currently have? None. In Guatemala the prosecutor\u2019s office has been annulled.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EDiverse sources also report that private banks have helped thwart investigations, as if responding to a political machine. \u201cIn many cases they provide incomplete information. There are requests for banking information made in June that have yet to receive a reply,\u201d one source told El Faro in November.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003ESandoval and a source in the judiciary claim that, since the expulsion of the CICIG in September 2019, most banks started to delay responses or directly ignore requests from the FECI. \u201cGuatemala is such a small and complex country that those who manage information can use it as an instrument of blackmail and power,\u201d Sandoval laments. \u201cSometimes we asked for banking information for a case and, days later, the person for whom we had requested the information appeared before the Public Prosecutor\u2019s Office because someone had informed them that they were being investigated,\u201d he says. \u201cNo investigation can withstand that.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EA source who worked for the CICIG in its final years claims that the international commission had to threaten, on various occasions, to raid banks\u2019 headquarters under a judicial warrant in order for banks to comply with judicial orders to turn over information.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EThough prosecutors lacked conclusive evidence that President Giammattei had participated in a crime when Consuelo Porras dismantled the unit in charge of the case, they believe the rapid accumulation of evidence against people in the president\u2019s inner circle would have made possible, in a question of months, a motion for impeachment.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E    \u003Cfigure class=\"pict pict_land pict_move_posc 0 cs_img cs_img--curr rule--ss_c\" data-shot=\"pict\" data-hint=\"pict\"\u003E \u003Cdiv class=\"pict__pobj text-overflow\"\u003E\u003Cimg src=https:\/\/elfaro.net\/get_img?ImageWidth=2000&ImageHeight=1229&ImageId=37056 class=\"pobj\" style=\"max-width: 100%\" rel=\"resizable\" alt=\"Page of the report by the Public Prosecutor's Office after conducting its October 2020 raid on a home in Antigua Guatemala. During the operation, prosecutors found 22 suitcases of cash totaling more than $16 million USD. Photo: El Faro\" \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E \u003Cfigcaption class=\"pict__text cs_img_caption folk_content typo_buttons line--ss_s0c line--ss_s0c--auto block full-width text-overflow rule--ss_l relative\"\u003E \u003Cdiv class=\"__content block-inline full-width align-top tint-text--idle relative\"\u003E Page of the report by the Public Prosecutor's Office after conducting its October 2020 raid on a home in Antigua Guatemala. During the operation, prosecutors found 22 suitcases of cash totaling more than $16 million USD. Photo: El Faro \u003C\/div\u003E \u003C\/figcaption\u003E \u003C\/figure\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EAt the start of 2021, a source in the Giammattei administration tipped off the FECI about suitcases of cash stored, like in Antigua, in the home of Giorgio Bruni. When prosecutors raided the property in February they found no money, but they did find documents that corroborate Witness A\u2019s testimony: dossiers of construction companies, vetting certificates for the company COAMCO, and licitation records from the Ministry of Communications, in some cases with written notes such as \u201cdelay.\u201d These documents had no apparent relation to Bruni\u2019s duties as the president\u2019s private secretary.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EProsecutors also found what appears to be a detailed list of campaign expenditures to the tune of $9.96 million USD, far above the legal limit of $3.84 million \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/www.prensalibre.com\/guatemala\/politica\/tse-fija-en-q29-millones-el-techo-de-campana-para-cada-partido-politico\/\"\u003Eestablished by the Supreme Electoral Tribunal\u003C\/a\u003E. At the end of the document, in an apparent exercise in cynicism, is a line item: \u201cFine $250k.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EAnother seized document reinforces the hypothesis that Bruni managed illegal contributions to Giammattei\u2019s campaign. By hand, the former private secretary wrote: \u201cContribution to campaign (R\u00e9gulo, Rafa, \u00c1ngelo),\u201d \u201c66,000 USD Cash. Electoral Monitoring System 3,750,000 USD,\u201d and, below, the name of the Mexican company Helicon. Under the line item \u201cPetitions\u201d is a list of ministries to which the company wanted to lend software services. Other requests include: \u201cConstruction of Schools,\u201d \u201cConstruction of Housing,\u201d \u201cPavement (Pothole Repair\/Carpeting),\u201d and, among others, \u201cSale of fertilizers to the Ministry of Agriculture.\u201d Guatemalan law prohibits foreign donations to candidates and political parties.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E    \u003Cfigure class=\"pict pict_land pict_move_posc 0 cs_img cs_img--curr rule--ss_c\" data-shot=\"pict\" data-hint=\"pict\"\u003E \u003Cdiv class=\"pict__pobj text-overflow\"\u003E\u003Cimg src=https:\/\/elfaro.net\/get_img?ImageWidth=2000&ImageHeight=1316&ImageId=37054 class=\"pobj\" style=\"max-width: 100%\" rel=\"resizable\" alt=\"Document seized by the Public Prosecutor's Office in the home of Giorgio Bruni, former private secretary to President Alejandro Giammattei, detailing the alleged illicit campaign donations in return for public contracts. Photo: El Faro\" \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E \u003Cfigcaption class=\"pict__text cs_img_caption folk_content typo_buttons line--ss_s0c line--ss_s0c--auto block full-width text-overflow rule--ss_l relative\"\u003E \u003Cdiv class=\"__content block-inline full-width align-top tint-text--idle relative\"\u003E Document seized by the Public Prosecutor's Office in the home of Giorgio Bruni, former private secretary to President Alejandro Giammattei, detailing the alleged illicit campaign donations in return for public contracts. Photo: El Faro \u003C\/div\u003E \u003C\/figcaption\u003E \u003C\/figure\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EWhen El Faro contacted the cofounder and CEO of Helicon, \u00c1ngelo Raimondi, he initially agreed to give an interview. By the time of publication, however, he hadn\u2019t conceded it.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EWitness A testified that the person \u201cexclusively\u201d in charge of the relationship with Jos\u00e9 Luis Benito and the delivery money to the Giammattei campaign was Bruni. The witness stated: \u201cHe solely used the name Alejandro Giammattei Falla, who was fully aware, while making this type of calls and thanking people.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EFECI prosecutors were unable to establish whether the 20 million quetzales (2.6 million USD) promised by Benito were paid, what route they took, and where they ended up. When in a series of meetings they showed Bruni and his attorneys the documents to convince the former secretary of Vamos that they had enough evidence to accuse him of unregistered campaign finance, he initially denied everything, but later offered to collaborate. Bruni offered to \u201cturn over information to go against Alejandro\u201d \u2014 to testify against the president.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EThat never occurred. In early July, the FECI called on Bruni to testify, but at the last moment his attorneys suspended the hearing by claiming that he had symptoms of Covid-19. The next time they spoke, he refused to cooperate.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EA Dead-End\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EJust prior to the removal of Sandoval from the FECI, in an effort to protect the advances of these investigations, prosecutors agreed to focus on tracing international transactions of the implicated people or businesses passing through the U.S. banking system. They wanted to enable U.S. agencies, in the case of a complete stonewalling in Guatemala, to pick up part of the case.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EA State Department official confirmed that the Biden administration has been aware for months of the content of Witness A\u2019s testimony against Giammattei, though the source did not reveal whether the Justice Department has acted on the information. A source in Guatemala claims to have submitted a recording of the testimony last year to Ambassador William Popp. Another in the U.S. turned it over to an FBI agent with open investigations in the region.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EA source in Washington and a person close to one of the accused claim that construction magnate Alejandro Matheu Escamilla has been cooperating for months with U.S. authorities.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EOn Jan. 21, Benito turned himself in to Guatemalan authorities after a year on the run, but there is limited trust in the attorney general\u2019s desire to convict him. In the first hearing against Benito on Jan. 28, Judge Silvia de Le\u00f3n \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/www.prensalibre.com\/guatemala\/justicia\/jueza-senala-fallos-del-mp-en-pesquisa-contra-jose-luis-benito-a-quien-ligo-a-proceso-en-caso-libramiento-de-chimaltenango-breaking\/\"\u003Epublicly rebuked\u003C\/a\u003E the prosecutors handling the case for their lack of preparation and \u201cpoor argumentation.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EIt\u2019s a portrait of the current justice system in Guatemala. So is the fact that the hearing to take the testimony of Witness A, which should have taken place in Judge Erika Aif\u00e1n\u2019s office, was discretely transferred to the offices of the FECI, on the fourth floor of the Public Prosecutor\u2019s Office. Aif\u00e1n has \u003Ca href=\"\/es\/202111\/centroamerica\/25827\/La-jueza-Aif%C3%A1n-describe-la-%E2%80%9Ccriminalizaci%C3%B3n-y-vigilancia%E2%80%9D-a-las-que-est%C3%A1-sometida.htm\"\u003Ereported for years that her staff spies on her\u003C\/a\u003E and leaks case information to politicians and criminals.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003ENor did the prosecutors inform the attorney general that Witness A\u2019s hearing was taking place. \u201cIs Giammattei involved in acts of corruption? I don\u2019t doubt it,\u201d says Juan Francisco Sandoval, exiled in the United States. \u201cThe attorney general protects the president, and it\u2019s evident that if she does so it\u2019s because the president asked her to.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E"}

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