Two executives of the National Construction Company, Sociedad Anónima (Conasa) and Renova Ingenieros, Sociedad Anónima accepted fraud charges this Friday, July 26, in the Chimaltenango Bypass case, a Q528.6 million “mega-project” that seems to be allergic to rain, since since its inauguration in 2019, it has been affected by landslides and floods.
The 14.5 kilometers of four lanes planned to ease the passage of the highway, called the Chimaltenango bypass, were boasted in April 2019 by former President Jimmy Morales as a “mega-project” and “historic milestone” to benefit more than six million Guatemalans; however, since then the project has been plagued by inconsistencies that motivated legal proceedings against several people.
On this account, this Friday, Jorge Alfredo Tejada Argueta, vice president of the Administrative Council and legal representative of Conasa, and Carlos Enrique Figueroa Rabanales, sole administrator and legal representative of Renova Ingenieros, Sociedad Anónima, accepted charges in the Chimaltenango Bypass case, which is being heard by the High Risk Court A.
Both executives were sentenced to 5 years in prison for fraud, but having accepted charges the sentence was reduced to 3 years and 4 months.
Details
The Chimaltenango Bypass untangles traffic on the Inter-American Highway in Chimaltenango and was inaugurated in 2019 by former President Jimmy Morales (2016-2020) at a cost of US$68.3 million (Q528.6 million), but despite this large investment, the section collapses with the rains and, according to sectors, exemplifies corruption in the country.
But two years later, the road is seriously suffering in winter, and the cost of the investment has grown by a quarter of its budget.
The first rain of the year in which Morales inaugurated the stretch was the prologue to a novel without an end, with continuous flooding and landslides that have stripped a controversial highway of slopes with concrete coverings that crumble in several sectors with each significant accumulation of water.
Un megafraud
In July 2020, 17 people were arrested for technical, financial and administrative anomalies surrounding the construction of the highway, but three months later, in October, the judge in charge of the case, Mynor Moto, ruled that there was no merit against the accused and released them.
In the judicial process, the former Minister of Communications of Jimmy Morales’ administration, José Luis Benito, was linked to the alleged corruption plot, but he also accepted the position and received a minimal sentence.
Benito was also charged with the 2020 appearance of US$15.7 million in cash in suitcases inside a residence under his alleged supervision.
They are all accused of fraud in a construction project initially awarded to the company Conasa and which, after its disqualification for other corruption cases with the Government, was transferred to its subsidiary Renova.
Closure recommendation
At the end of 2019, Conred recommended “that mitigation work be carried out to avoid this type of problem and at the time it was suggested that the passage be closed at that location.
The 2019 Conred assessment report, issued weeks after the first landslides, stated that “the lithological characteristics of the rocks in the area are made up of intercalations of basalt blocks, tephra and residual paleosols – volcanic-type soil.”
These materials “have low cohesion and are highly susceptible to erosion and detachment when in contact with water,” he added.
#Conasa #Renova #executives #plead #guilty #corruption #case