PanamaTimes

Wednesday, Apr 02, 2025

Ecuador investigates former president Correa, benefactor of Podemos, for embezzlement

Ecuador investigates former president Correa, benefactor of Podemos, for embezzlement

The Ecuadorian Justice investigates former President Rafael Correa, a benefactor of Podemos, for alleged misappropriation of funds within the framework of the Sucre case, a network of corruption around Alex Saab, alleged front man of the Venezuelan president, Nicolas Maduro. Correa, in addition, was a benefactor of Podemos by giving contracts worth 2.6 million to the cooperative of the party founded by Pablo Iglesias.
The Ecuadorian Prosecutor’s Office has notified the former president of the opening of a new investigation against him, as confirmed by Correa himself in a message broadcast through his social networks.

“I have just been notified with a preliminary investigation of the Sucre case, one more cantinflada (there are already 48) paid by the Ecuadorian people,” he said. Thus, he has indicated that the Justice of Ecuador is “a circus.” “Members of the majority of the Assembly’s Audit Commission are part of the clowns,” he criticized.

The former president currently resides in Belgium despite having been sentenced to eight years in prison in Ecuador for his involvement in a bribery case, accusations that he has repeatedly denied.

The Audit Commission of the Parliament of Ecuador has indicated in a report the existence of “fictitious exports” of the Global Fund company through the Unitary System of Regional Compensation (Sucre).

The system was adopted in 2009 and virtual trade was allowed between member countries of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of America-Peoples’ Trade Treaty (ALBA-TCP). According to the president of the commission, Fernando Villavicencio, Sucre was an alternative to the dollar, but it would have been used to launder more than 2,000 million.

In this way, Saab would have used the compensation system of the ALBA countries to launder money through payment for fictitious exports between Ecuador and Venezuela, which would have allowed it to launder large amounts of money during the Correa government.

These exports were made with the alleged complicity of more than thirty high-ranking officials of the Government of the then president of Ecuador, according to several parliamentarians. The commission’s report on the corruption plot in question would have also been sent to prosecutors in the United States, Panama, Colombia and Venezuela.

Correa, for his part, continues to denounce a judicial persecution against him by “powerful groups” that seek to eliminate him from the Ecuadorian political sphere.

Contracts to the Podemos cooperative

The Government of former Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa awarded 11 public contracts finger worth 2.6 million euros to Kinema, the Podemos cooperative. Some payments that were made through the Embassy of Ecuador in Spain between 2012 and 2016. These contracts were intended to provide legal advice on mortgage law. In exchange for large sums of money, the entity linked to the party founded by Pablo Iglesias He advised Ecuadorians residing in Spain to prevent them from being evicted.

OKDIARIO exclusively unveiled in September an unpublished documentation that demonstrates these payments. Some contracts that had not seen the light and that this newspaper has achieved after an intense investigation that has led us to cross to the other side of the Atlantic and travel more than 8,500 kilometers. This is because this documentation has disappeared from Spain. From Madrid to Quito to locate the evidence of the payments to Kinema that had been lost in the diplomatic headquarters of the Andean country in Spain and that someone, until today, kept under lock and key in Ecuador.
Newsletter

Related Articles

PanamaTimes
0:00
0:00
Close
OpenAI Attains Unprecedented $40 Billion Investment
Argentina’s “Magician” or a PR Illusion? “Individuals Are Sifting Through Garbage and Resting on the Streets”
Ecuador Gears Up for Influx of US Military as Measures Intensify Against Violent Drug Cartels
The Trump Administration Withdraws Legal Status for More than 530,000 Immigrants from Four Nations.
Deportation of Alleged Venezuelan Gang Members to El Salvador Raises Legal and Human Rights Concerns
Leaders of the US and Ukraine Hold Constructive Discussion During Ongoing Crisis
US Federal Reserve Revises Down Economic Growth Projections Due to Tariff Ambiguities
EU Charges US Tech Giants with Violating Digital Regulations
Trump Administration's Deportation of Alleged Gang Members Sparks Legal Dispute
Intense Tornadoes and Dust Storms Result in 33 Deaths Throughout Central and Southern United States
CK Hutchison, led by Li Ka-shing, encounters backlash from China regarding the sale of Panama Canal ports to a consortium led by BlackRock.
Meta to Introduce Community Notes Feature in March as Part of New Content Moderation Approach
Trump's ambassador nominee confirmed Canada's sovereignty during trade disputes.
The ICC’s retaliation on behalf of drug traffickers against Philippine President Duterte, who took a stand against them and shielded 100 million Filipinos from the drugs-death trade—overlooking the reality that every triumph carries its own price.
Mark Carney Selected as Leader of Canada's Liberal Party, Poised to Assume the Role of Prime Minister
Pope Francis Displays Signs of Recovery, Yet His Hospitalization Persists.
Trump Administration Unveils Self-Deportation App for Undocumented Immigrants
Trump Administration Plans New Travel Ban Including Afghanistan and Pakistan
Global Scam Syndicate Capitalizes on Fraudulent Celebrity Advertisements to Deceive Thousands
Devastating Passing of 20-Year-Old American Bodybuilder Sparks Health Worries
Microsoft to Sunset Skype in May, Prioritizing Teams as Communication Evolves
Katy Perry Set to Join All-Female Crew for Blue Origin Flight
Apple Resolves iPhone Dictation Bug That Linked 'Racist' to 'Trump'
Proposal Introduced for $250 Bill Featuring Donald Trump
Research Examines Possible Connection Between COVID-19 Vaccines and Post-Vaccination Syndrome
Latin America News Update: Gatherings, Legal Conflicts, and Economic Developments
Vatican Declares Pope Francis' Health Status as 'Critical'
Mexico Suggests Constitutional Amendments to Protect Sovereignty Following U.S. Terrorist Labels on Cartels
Tequila Sector Faces Oversupply Challenge as Agave Prices Fall Sharply
Pope Francis Continues His Hospital Stay While Doctors Treat Complicated Infection
AI Giants Contest Nvidia's Supremacy with Emerging Chip Innovations
California's CalExit Movement Grows Momentum Amid Political and Economic Discourse in the State
Trump Asserts BRICS 'Is Finished' In Light of Tariff Threats
CPJ Report Indicates Highest Number of Journalists Killed in 2024
Climate change presents considerable threats to worldwide cocoa production.
Apple Releases Critical Security Update Following Vulnerability Reports
Justin Bieber Sparks Concern as New Footage Raises Health Fears
Trump Administration Directs Admiral to Leave Official Residence in Three Hours
US Confiscates Second Aircraft Associated with Maduro's Government
The Trump administration is considering El Salvador's proposal to accommodate U.S. prisoners.
Trump Wins Again as Canada Agrees to Strengthen Border Security
Wall Street Journal Criticizes Trump's Trade War with Canada and Mexico
Trump Freezes Tariffs on Mexico After Agreement on Border Security
Nearly 96% of New Cars Registered in Norway in January Were Electric
Marco Rubio Urges Panama to Limit Chinese Influence Amid Canal Dispute
Apple Surpasses Revenue and Earnings Expectations, But iPhone Sales Disappoint
Bill Gates Reflects on Past Mistakes and Acknowledges Yuval Noah Harari's Insight
Trump Imposes Emergency Tariffs on Colombia Following Immigration Dispute
Musk and X Intensify Legal Battle Over Advertising Boycott, Suing Nestlé, LEGO, and Shell
Trump: Canada Should Become the 51st U.S. State
×