A report revealed that unaccounted expenses amounting to 505,335 balboas were found assigned to the Community Board of Calidonia. The Superior Court of Appeals of the First Judicial District of Panama, composed of judges Miriam Jaén, Eric Belgrave, and Eyvis Jaén, confirmed the decision of compliance judge Elizabeth Berroa to deny the request for replacement of short prison sentences with community service for former Calidonia representative Ramón Ashby, convicted of embezzlement.
According to ruling No. 13,525, Ashby's legal defense sought to replace 60 months of prison with community service, but the Court determined that the request did not meet the legal requirements established in the penal code, nor did it fulfill the purpose of punishment regarding general prevention. Anti-corruption prosecutor Johaira González Castillo represented the Public Ministry during this process, while private defense attorney Gladis Quintero Fuentes was in charge of the defense of the sanctioned.
The criminal case is related to an audit report from the Comptroller General of the Republic covering the period 1999-2003, which revealed alleged financial and administrative irregularities in the Community Board of Calidonia. In light of this situation, the Superior Court of Appeals did not grant the replacement of the penalties requested by Ramón Ashby's defense, thus maintaining the initial sentence for the crime against public administration.
