Speaking prior to the start of the hearing for the Odebrecht US$92 million bribes case, Odebrecht commercial representative Angel Rondón said he is willing to reach an agreement with the Attorney General Office to resolve the case in which Odebrecht officers admitted in a New York court having paid US$92 million to secure contract work in the country. But, Rondón maintains that the cash he received, US$79 million, was in payment of his fees in securing contract work for Odebrecht with the Dominican government and that returning that cash is out of the question.
Rondón advanced that lots of truth would come forth during the hearing that began on Wednesday, 23 January 2019. Rondon said that if Attorney General Jean Alain Rodriguez had been interested in resolving the case, he should have just included him in the case and not the others.
He said the Public Ministry will have to prove in the hearing who received the bribes and why others with whom he met to lobby for the approval of the contracted work are not included.
The Attorney General has presented accusations for the US$92 million bribe to seven individuals: Angel Rondón Rijo, who served as commercial representative for Odebrecht in the Dominican Republic; former Public Works Minister Víctor Díaz Rúa; former presidents of the Senate Andrés Bautista and Jesús Vásquez; lawyer Conrado Pittaluga, senator Tommy Galán Grullón, and former director of the National Institute of Potable Water and Sewage, Roberto Rodríguez.
The case continues on 24 January 2019 at the Supreme Court of Justice.
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Listin Diario
Diario Libre
24 January 2019
