Former Panama President Ricardo Martinelli Awaits Fair Trial Decision

Attorney Jessica Canto, part of former President Ricardo Martinelli's legal team, reiterated that the donations from the Brazilian company are 'properly declared and justified' before the competent authorities as campaign donations. Therefore, they expect justice to be done and due process to be followed. However, Martinelli will continue to participate in all stages of the process, as he has done so far, awaiting the final decision. She noted that her client is calm but also has great expectations for the outcome of the case, as he has suffered 'many injustices' that make him think he will 'again suffer the same fate'. She added that she considers it 'unfair' that a trial is being held in the country without evidence, since if it was annulled in Brazil, the same should happen locally, but she will not anticipate the judge Baloisa Marquínez's criteria. She detailed that the rest of the former head of state's legal team is reading the evidence presented to support their position once the case resumes on January 21, 2026. Last week, Judge Marquínez declared a three-day recess so that the defense lawyers could analyze the new evidence incorporated by the Prosecutor's Office. 'We hope she is evaluating everything and that this time she does what is right for former President Ricardo Martinelli because we shouldn't even be in a hearing, everyone should be free because it is a case that was already null in Brazil,' she stated. 'Ricardo has been very attentive to his hearing and has been responsive when the judge has asked him something; his health is stable and he remains expectant that justice will be done,' she said in Nex Noticias. The lawyer believes that the explanations given by the Prosecutor's Office during the first week of the ordinary hearing seek nothing other than to criminalize the donations from the construction company destined for various local media that should also be part of the process but are not included.