Guatemala Corruption Scandal Rocks Nation with High-Profile Cases
In 2015, former President Otto Pérez Molina and Vice President Roxana Baldetti were arrested in a major corruption scandal that has left Guatemala reeling. The investigation into the customs fraud network they allegedly oversaw is just one of several high-profile cases involving these two leaders.
The Web of Corruption
Guatemalan Attorney General’s Office and CICIG have worked tirelessly to expose the dealings of an administration likened to an organized crime syndicate.
Four major corruption cases involve Pérez Molina and Baldetti:
La Línea (The Line)
A customs scandal led directly to the president’s resignation and the jailing of both Pérez Molina and Baldetti. The arrests were the result of investigations initiated in May 2014 by the Guatemalan attorney general and CICIG into a fraud network that lowered taxes on importers in exchange for financial kickbacks.
- Juan Carlos Monzón, private secretary to Baldetti, was initially suspected of leading the network.
- Evidence from wiretaps suggested that Pérez Molina and Baldetti themselves oversaw the operations.
- Salvador Estuardo González Álvarez, alias “Eco,” testified that Pérez Molina and Baldetti received an estimated $38 million in illicit kickbacks on around 70 state contracts.
Cooptación del Estado (State Capture)
Investigations uncovered a criminal network organized and led by Pérez Molina and Baldetti that received illicit funds from a group of state contractors to help finance their 2011 presidential election campaign. Contractors provided these funds on the promise they would be given preferential treatment in winning state contracts should Pérez Molina be elected president.
- Between taking office in January 2012 and April 2015, the pair received an estimated $38 million in illicit kickbacks on around 70 state contracts.
- They put this money to personal use buying properties, vacations, and vanity items.
La Cooperacha (Kick-In)
The most recent corruption case to surface is that of “La Cooperacha” presented by Guatemalan Attorney General Thelma Aldana during a June 11 press conference when she outlined a new round of charges against top government officials.
- The case involves at least five ministers, including the former heads of Guatemala’s Defense, Communications, Energy, and Interior Ministries.
- Those arrested included former Interior Minister Mauricio López Bonilla.
- These officials are accused of spending over $4.7 million during a three-year period to buy Pérez Molina luxurious birthday gifts, including a powerboat in 2012, a luxury beach house in 2013, and a $3.5 million helicopter in 2014.
Conclusion
Taken as a whole, the cases illustrate an administration organized around corruption: allegedly using a corrupt campaign finance scheme to cheat its way into office, and using its influence and offices to steal money from an already impoverished nation.