When asked if he had contacted Mauricio Funes, Guzman replied: “I don’t and I don’t want it.” Juan Carlos Guzmán was referred to court under tight security measures.
Last night, Juan Carlos Guzmán Perdujo was transferred to the Eighth Investigative Court in San Salvador under strict security measures that included dozens of police from elite units and a helicopter.
Guzmán Perdugo was later transferred to the Isidro Menendez Judicial Center barracks. This is while the penal centers determine the prison where he will be held.
The defendant, who was extradited from Costa Rica, arrived at Monsignor Romero International Airport at around 6:30 PM and was brought before the court around 8:00 PM to face his accusation of money and asset laundering.
The father-in-law of ex-president Mauricio Funes, Juan Carlos Guzmán Perdujo, was extradited on May 19, pleaded by a court for laundering 133,564 dollars of public funds while running Funes.
Guzmán Berdugo, wearing an armored jacket and helmet, pleaded not guilty to the accusation leveled by the Attorney General of the Republic and that he had a way to prove the legal origin of his funds.
It appears that the defendant was a fugitive from justice in Nicaragua and was arrested by the Costa Rican authorities when he allegedly attempted to travel to Panama in April 2019. The extradition process was administered by then-Prosecutor Douglas Melendez and upheld by the plenary session of the former Supreme Court of Justice.
Attorney General Raul Melara said at the time, that the handover process was too long because Guzmán Perdugo was the last legal resource in Costa Rica, and until those resources were exhausted, he could be brought.
Guzmán is the father of Ada Mitchell Guzmán Sigüenza, better known as Michy and a passionate partner of Mauricio Funes. The attorney general’s office also referred to the latter two as being involved in the millionaire extraction of state funds during the Funes administration, as they were accused of money and asset laundering offenses.
According to the attorney general’s office, Funes presided over a structure that plundered those $ 351 million public funds.
The attorney general’s office said Guzmán Perdugo would have laundered $ 133,564 in presidential funds into the Funes administration.
Last night, Juan Carlos Guzmán Perdujo was transferred to the Eighth Investigation Court in San Salvador, under heavy security measures. Photo EDH / David Marroquín
A prosecutor in the case explained that Guzmán Berdugo spent these money on bank deposits, air ticket purchases, vehicle purchases, and payments on personal and his wife’s loans.
There are car buyers who buy it for $ 15,000 and after 15 months sell it for $ 6,000. The attorney general said, “This is a disregard for buying cars to transfer illegal money through obtaining a commodity.”
Pictures: Funes’ father-in-law handed over and forwarded to court
The official added, “It has been decided that he cannot justify $ 133,000, because as of 2011 he does not even provide an income statement nor does it provide data. The legal origin of these funds cannot be proven. “
Guzmán defends himself
But Guzmán confirmed yesterday that he had documents proving that the $ 133,000 laundered, according to the OTP, was the product of his work for more than 15 years at a company where he was earning $ 3,000 a month.
He even said he earned more than $ 100,000.
“I never washed them,” Guzman said, “I have all of my documents,” because of what he said was innocent and that was the reason not to worry.
When asked if he had contacted Mauricio Funes, Guzman replied: “I don’t and I don’t want it.”