Prosecutor Rafael Vela labeled as false the arguments set forth by the
Public Ministry's head Pedro Chavarry to justify his removal and that of Prosecutor Jose Domingo Perez from the Lava Jato Case Special Prosecution Group.
First of all, with regard to Chavarry's claim that the above-mentioned prosecutor has not submitted the information of the cases under investigation, Vela rejected such version and —on the contrary— affirmed he has scrupulously delivered the required data.
"The information we have denied is the one expressly determined by law such as
collaboration agreements, which should be reserved by law. Therefore, we cannot inform the Attorney General or someone without legitimacy about them," he said in a press conference.
As for the criticism Jose Domingo Perez was subjected to, Vela recalled the Public Ministry's internal control body has permanently filed the investigations against him.
"So, the Attorney General is not recognizing the point of view of legality in consideration of Public Ministry's decentralized internal control bodies," he commented.
Vela remarked that Chavarry has justified his
decision to remove them with vague and imprecise arguments as he speaks of information requirements that he has allegedly brought up, but he does not mention any of them.
"We are going to answer this, and that's why we say the decision he made is illegal," he indicated.
Finally, with respect to an alleged overexposure of Perez, Vela explained that as a member of the Public Ministry, he speaks through the institution's online platform, via the streaming service Justicia TV, owned by the Judiciary. Therefore, the institution guarantees his public appearances.
Attorney General Pedro Chavarry removed Prosecutors Rafael Vela and Jose Domingo Perez from the Lava Jato case on New Year's Eve.
The decision set off
street protests in Peru, bringing members of political and human rights groups, former ministers, politicians, and the general public together.
Odebrecht
As is known, the Brazilian construction giant admitted to having paid millions in bribes to government officials in Peru, in order to secure public-works contracts.
As a result,
Odebrecht benefited from over US$143 million between 2005 and 2014 in Peru, according to the U.S. Justice Department.
(END) CCR/RMB/MVB
Published: 1/2/2019