The Costa Rican construction company Meco disbursed $ 9.4 million to former public officials in Panama in exchange for the “streamlining and fluidity” in the management of procedures and disbursements for the progress of works.
According to a publication of the Panamanian newspaper “La Prensa” Carlos Cerdas, president of Meco, told the Sixth Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office of Panama that he was summoned by Jorge Churro Ruiz, Director of Contracts Administration of the Ministry of Public Works (MOP) of that country, who made the offer in exchange for favors in the contracts.
He requested a percentage that ranged from 5 to 10% of the gross value of their contracts, as a political favor,”
says the Panamanian publication.
The money was deposited to the society Blue Apple Services, Inc., (BAS) following instruction of Churro Ruiz.
According to the television network TVN, the “Blue Apple Services” case is about “the creation of a fraudulent legal and financial structure to move money resulting from bribes paid to former employees of the Housing and Public Works portfolios.”
Meco would have paid that money based on six contracts that the MOP had awarded it, according to La Prensa:
• The construction of the interchange on the Pan-American highway – Puente de las Américas stretch – Arraiján
• The extension of the road La Villa – Las Tablas
• The rehabilitation of roads and construction of vehicular bridges in Los Santos
• The viaduct on Avenida Nacional with Omar Torrijos
• The tunnel and rehabilitation of the track of the Rio Hato airport
• Construction of bridges and roads in east Panama
According to the report, two other businessmen also told the Panamanian Prosecutor’s Office that they had paid for benefits in their contracts: Juan Rodríguez, from Constructora Rodsa, and Alberto Jurado from Bagatrac, SA.
The investigation shows that Blue Apple Services, Inc., through accounts in three banks, got $40.6 million,”
quotes the report.
This case has resulted in three people behind bars: Jorge Churro Ruiz, Joaquín Rodríguez Salcedo, former Vice President of Factoring and Bonds of Global Bank, and attorney Federico Barrios Alain, president and legal representative of Blue Apple Services, Inc.
Meco states on its website that
the history of Meco in Panama began in 1994 and is intimately related to the Panama Canal, the most symbolic work of Panamanians, in which the company has worked 20 years in different projects since the Canal was administered by the Americans to an important role in the newly inaugurated Expanded Canal.”