State prosecutors did not act after having been authorized by Supreme Court Judge Francisco Ortega to travel to Brazil for personal interviews to Odebrecht officers who had shared accusatory comments regarding bribes paid in the Dominican Republic. There is now speculation this could kill any case the Dominican state has against the short list of seven the Attorney General has accused of taking bribes. Odebrecht revealed during the US court hearings that it had paid US$92 million in bribes in the Dominican Republic to get government contract work.
Diario Libre published on 26 February 2019 the authorization from the Supreme Court judge. Attorney General Jean Alain Rodríguez had requested the authorization on 2 November 2017, giving the prosecutors ample time to coordinate traveling to Brazil for the questioning of former Odebrecht general manager, Marcelo Bahía Odebrecht, former general manager in the Dominican Republic Marco Vasconcelos Cruz, and others.
Miguel Valerio, lawyer of former Public Works Minister Víctor Díaz Rúa, made known to the press the existence of Resolution 0073-2017 and the lack of diligence of state prosecutors. Valerio has called for the validity of the accusatory statements by the Odebrecht officers to be annulled as per the local legal requirement of these having to have been interrogated in person.
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Diario Libre
28 February 2019