The Odebrecht trial entered one of its most sensitive phases with the testimony of the defense's financial expert, José Ángel Robles, who appeared before the court to try to dismantle the Public Ministry's thesis that funds from bribes paid by the Brazilian construction company were channeled to the presidential campaign of Juan Carlos Varela through accounts linked to Panamanian businessman Jaime Lasso.
The discussion focused on the movement of money from the offshore company Innovation Research Engineering and Development Ltd., which the Public Prosecutor's Office identified as part of the system used by Odebrecht to distribute bribes in different countries. According to the prosecution, those funds entered the Don James Foundation and other societies controlled by Lasso, and from there they would have served to finance political activities.
Robles explained that his expert opinion focused on reconstructing the path of the money from its entry to its exhaustion, reviewing bank statements, accounting books, receipts, contracts, and the documentation provided by the accountant Franklin Gordon, who kept the accounting for Lasso's structures. According to the expert, between 2009 and 2013, approximately 6.7 million dollars entered, which —according to his version— were used entirely for operational and political expenses of the Panameñista Party, without detecting personal appropriation or asset laundering concealment maneuvers.
Among the main destinations of the money detailed in the hearing are:
More than 688 thousand dollars in payments to the media, advertising, and image management. Around 669 thousand dollars delivered to members of the party's Finance Committee. Payroll, fees, and per diems for about 46 people in the political structure. Transfers linked to campaign activities of Juan Carlos Varela and payments associated with the structure of José Luis “Popi” Varela. An international contract for 3.6 million dollars with the company Carretero Internacional, related to the production and logistics of proselytizing material.
Robles maintained that the money was fully executed and even spent by about 24 thousand dollars more than the amount received, which contradicts the idea that Lasso would have personally benefited from the scheme. Another point that the defense tried to clarify was the circulation of funds between different accounts. “No criminal stratification pattern is observed, but an administrative dynamic,” he explained before the judges.
However, during the cross-examination, the Public Prosecutor's Office insisted that the core of the case is not limited to the use of the money, but to its origin. The expert assured that it was internal movement within the same financial group and not operations designed to hide the origin of the money. The Public Prosecutor's Office recalled that Innovation Research is one of the companies used by Odebrecht to pay bribes, so the central debate is whether corruption funds ended up feeding a political campaign in Panama.
The prosecutors also questioned the expert's dependence on internal documents provided by Lasso's own circle and raised doubts about the absence of external vouchers to certify that all payments actually corresponded to services rendered. The accusing party maintains that Lasso's accounts functioned as a vehicle to channel illicit-origin resources into political financing, while the defense attempts to position the narrative that it was party financing carried out without intent to conceal or personal benefit.
The trial will continue with the presentation of new evidence and witnesses, in a process that maintains under scrutiny the link between Odebrecht's international bribery scheme and the financing of political campaigns in Panama.
