Panamanian Steals Almost $6M from Spanish Agency to Fund Casino Trips

A Panamanian charged with keeping right financial records for a Spanish government activity government agency did just now the opposite. He robbed it of millions of dollars, using the money to lede a lush and gaming lifestyle.

Omar Che Guevara Barrios is now on tribulation for his crimes. But the compositor's case is far from over.

Barrios worked as an controller for the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID, for its Spanish people acronym), an entity that oversees Spain’s international evolution policies. The AECID maintains an office staff inward Guevara’s rest home land of Panama, where he helped care the books.

A describe by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European North and Cooperation (MAEUEC, for its Spanish people acronym) reveals that Ernesto Guevara appropriated €5 billion (US$5.56 million) from the AECID. He spent a great deal of the money inwards CIRSA-owned casinos inwards Panama.

Guevara’s exploits are described inwards a dossier prepared on May 22, 2020 past the Directorate of the Division of Control and Improvement of Management. That info was and then delivered to the Court of Auditors 17 years later. The method of accounting process was carried come out inward Spain, while the Panamanian Prosecutor’s Office investigates the facts from the felonious side.

Suspect on the Lamb

The alarms went cancelled inwards the technological cooperation business office of the AECID inwards Republic of Panama in mid-February 2020, after Guevara, hired as an accounting executive inwards 1992, stopped up(p) sledding to his chore without explanation. The investigating revealed that for years he had been stealing funds irregularly.

This led the Metropolitan Prosecutor’s Office of Primary Care of Panama to come out an hitch stock-purchase warrant inwards April 2020. The office accused him of “crimes against economic assets inwards the organize of theft with breach of trust.”

Guevara, however, never received the warrant. To this day, his whereabouts remain unknown.

The modus operandi deployed past Ernesto Guevara Barrios consisted of forging the signature of the full general coordinator of Spanish people cooperation inward Panama on checks drawn on triad cant accounts that the AECID has inward deuce Panamanian banks.

The concealing of the cant statements made it hard for anyone to observance something was wrong. It also allowed the fraudulent practices to last for at least 13 years. At least from 2007, Che Guevara was dipping into the accounts.

Following the Money Trail

The appropriation began with the issuance of a counterfoil signed past the comptroller and the falsified rubric of the superior general coordinator. Ernesto Guevara did non present the checks directly to the camber to avoid having to constantly move to the financial institution, but endorsed them.

The majority of the checks were endorsed to Gaming and Services. This is a subsidiary through which the Spanish people transnational CIRSA operates casinos, bingos, and expansion slot political machine rooms in Panama. One of the places he frequented was Fantastic Casino CC Dorado, placed inward the center of Republic of Panama City.

The investigation revealed that inwards just now unity of the terzetto affected accounts, the Gaming and Services department was Guevara’s regular target. From a leg of financial institution BAC Credomatic, he diverted cash in hand of at to the lowest degree €1.27 (US$1.39 million). The cant sham that the money was going to Gaming and Services. This represents almost 40% of the €3.26 trillion (US$3.58 million) he stole from that account statement alone.

The investigation, which is noneffervescent dynamic today, discovered that Ernesto Guevara successfully forged at to the lowest degree 1,500 checks inwards 2019. The issuance of vouchers, their endorsement, and subsequent negotiation with the bank was the “usual method.” However, both issue and income movements “of unknown region origin,” or betwixt bank accounts, feature also been detected.

Potable Water Uncovers the Scam

In say non to provoke suspicion, Ernesto Guevara also falsified the statistics of the bank building accounts so that the theoretical balance appeared and didn’t demonstrate any unnatural transactions. However, his theft came to an end, thanks to potable water.

The Directorate of the Subsector of Drinking Water and Sanitary Sewerage (DISAPAS, for its Spanish acronym) is the local entity executing the “Drinking Water and Sanitation Program inwards Rural and Indigenous Areas of Panama.” In 2020, after it didn’t invite the $1-million transferee it was expecting, it notified AECID. A call in to the cant discovered that the account statement held less than $2,000. After that, multiple alarms went off.

Guevara is shamed of embezzlement, but Spanish people authorities believe others should settle as well. AECID power spell after Games and Services, the outside Panamanian controller meant to support the books and mayhap the banks.

The Panamanian Police are still searching for Ernesto Guevara and the Panamanian Prosecutor’s Office continues with the investigating inwards tell to clarify the facts. A try granted a petition inwards a auditory modality held II weeks ago to pass an extension service of the investigation. It testament at present running play until at least October, maybe longer.

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