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Argentine trial hears of cash withdrawals, media payments by ex-contractor
🇦🇷 Argentina /Crime & Justice

Argentine trial hears of cash withdrawals, media payments by ex-contractor

From La Nación · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Under investigation
  • Accountants testified in the "Cuadernos de las Coimas" trial regarding cash withdrawals, fake invoices, and payments to media outlets.
  • Testimony focused on Electroingeniería, a major state contractor, and its financial dealings, including large cash movements and payments to media companies.
  • The trial involves former President Cristina Kirchner as a key defendant, with financial investigators detailing suspicious transactions.

Accountants for Argentina's former tax agency, AFIP, have provided testimony in the ongoing "Cuadernos de las Coimas" (Notebooks of Bribes) trial, shedding light on suspicious financial activities linked to state contractors. The focus was on Electroingeniería, a prominent company that secured numerous state contracts between 2003 and 2015.

We investigated the partners of the Eling group, Osvaldo Acosta and Gerardo Ferreyra. We found that there were companies to which Electroingeniería sent funds. They were media companies: Radiodifusión del Plata and Televisión Digital Argentina. Those were the companies we investigated.

— Alfredo Pedro PuyoAlfredo Pedro Puyo, a former AFIP accountant, described the companies that received funds from Electroingeniería.

Alfredo Pedro Puyo, a former AFIP accountant, told the Federal Oral Court No. 7 that his investigation into Electroingeniería uncovered "inconsistencies" in declared income taxes. More significantly, he identified substantial cash withdrawals, including one of over two million dollars, which he deemed unusual. Puyo also noted payments directed towards media companies, specifically Radiodifusión del Plata and Televisión Digital Argentina, suggesting these were intended to finance their operations.

They were to finance the media companies. The companies were losing money and had to be financed somehow.

— Alfredo Pedro PuyoAlfredo Pedro Puyo explained his assessment of the purpose behind the payments to media companies.

Another AFIP accountant, Matilde Lanza, corroborated these findings, detailing cash withdrawals from Decavial S.A. and Panedile. She highlighted a $315,000 withdrawal by the son of Panedile's owner, noting it coincided with alleged money deliveries documented in the case. Both accountants emphasized that their investigations were conducted internally and at the request of Judge Claudio Bonadio, aiming to uncover "spurious financing" within the companies under scrutiny. The trial continues with former President Cristina Kirchner as a central figure.

There was a movement that caught our attention: a cash withdrawal in dollars. An amount like two million dollars, which remained in the company in cash for more than one fiscal year. That's why it caught our attention.

— Alfredo Pedro PuyoAlfredo Pedro Puyo detailed a specific, large cash withdrawal that raised suspicion.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by La Nación in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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