Panama and Brazil Dispute Evidence in Odebrecht Case

One of the questions lawyers are asking is whether Panama will insist on using inadmissible evidence, especially since in Brazil, the country where the case originated, these have been annulled. The Supreme Court of Brazil annulled in 2023 all evidence obtained through agreements with the construction company due to procedural errors committed by the Brazilian judiciary, which means that in Panama this evidence cannot be used in the trial. In January of this year, Panama reiterated to Brazil a request for international cooperation, but it did not materialize because the Brazilians needed to know how this evidence was going to be used. Brazil gave Panama a 60-day deadline to clarify this, but never received answers to its concerns, and international assistance did not materialize. The former president lamented that this type of situation continues to happen, especially because in other countries the process has fallen through, and in the case of Panama it would have a major impact on investment due to the lack of due process. 'On November 6 I was duly notified, this is a case that the Brazilian government has said was fabricated,' he stated. Lawyers have warned that the evidence from Brazil cannot be used because it is equivalent to apples from a poisoned tree. With the document in hand, the president of Realizando Metas showed that the notification occurred at 2:00 p.m. on the past November 6. Former President Ricardo Martinelli himself confirmed this Tuesday that he received the notification for the Odebrecht case hearing, which was scheduled to start this November 11 and was rescheduled under the pretext that the former head of state could not be located. 'There's something fishy going on.' The Judicial Branch rescheduled the ordinary hearing of the Odebrecht case for the next January 12, 2026.