Judge José Alejandro Vargas did not validate the agreement reached between the Attorney General Office and executives of the Brazilian Odebrecht construction project. Attorney General Jean-Alain Rodríguez had revealed that the agreement called for compensation to the Dominican government for US$184 million, or double the confessed US$92 million in bribes paid by Odebrecht, over an eight-year period.
In his legal opinion, Judge Vargas stated that the agreement did not meet the procedures established in the Penal Procedures Code. While Vargas acknowledged the agreement was the result of a consensus between parties, he said it could not be applied given the seriousness of the matter. He said for the conciliation agreement to be valid, the participation of the victims, the accused and the complainants is required, which was not the present case. While rejecting the form used by the Attorney General, the judge said the parties should instead choose a mechanism established in the Penal Procedures Code.
The Green Campaign (Marcha Verde) that seeks an end to government impunity had protested at the Justice Palace demanding that the judge reject the validation of the agreement.
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El Nuevo Diario
El Nacional
Listin Diario
El Caribe
Diario Libre
2 March 2017
