A case that has captured public attention in recent months is the indictment of a non-police public official for his alleged involvement in a plot to cover up the former senator Gustavo Penades.
The latter was charged at the end of October 2023 with 22 crimes related to the sexual abuse of minors.The recent hearing on Tuesday was one of the new developments in this controversial case.
The prosecutor for Sexual Crimes, Alicia Ghione, communicated through Javier Benech, head of Communications of the Prosecutor’s Office, that the official involved was charged with the crime of simple bribery. According to the court’s determination, the accused was given a precautionary measure of 180 days house arrestwhile the investigation continues. The process remains confidential, which prevents further details about this individual and the extent of his involvement from being known.
The Criminal Code, in its article 157, defines simple bribery as the act in which a public official, in the exercise of his functions, receives, for himself or for a third party, an undue remuneration, or accepts the promise of such remuneration.
This article establishes that the penalties for this crime include fines of three hundred to two thousand pesos, and special disqualification that can extend from two to four years.Likewise, if the official accepts remuneration for an act already performed, related to his functions, the penalty is reduced by one third to one half.
On the other hand, Gustavo Penadés remains in preventive detention pending a formal sentence. Meanwhile, the former director of Comcar, Carlos Taroco, was sentenced at the beginning of March 2024 to three years of effective imprisonment after an abbreviated trial. He was found guilty of qualified bribery, criminal association and multiple crimes of revealing secrets. This case was one of several that began to close in the criminal justice cycle regarding the Penadés plot.
In December 2023, five other people were also sentenced for their role in helping PenadésAmong those convicted was former Parlasur official Diego Cuiñas, who was charged with a continuing crime of influence peddling and criminal association, taking into account the aggravating factor of his status as a public official.
These five people were initially scheduled to be charged for allegedly having assisted the former senator in the scandal of sexual exploitation of minors. However, they were finally convicted at the end of last year, as confirmed by several sources from the Prosecutor’s Office.
An abbreviated trial was held in which the accused admitted their collaboration in the crimes, accepting reduced sentences “up to one third less than what the law establishes”according to sources. Such agreements are provided for in legal regulations as an alternative in criminal proceedings.
In addition, a consensus was reached for economic reparation, as stipulated by the Gender-Based Violence Actwhich establishes a payment of up to 12 minimum wages. This was explained in detail by Soledad Suárez, the victims’ lawyer, to the press.
The judge in the case, Marcela Vargas, approved the agreement for three civilians and two police officers. The police officers, one of whom collaborated directly with Carlos Taroco, faced charges of aggravated bribery and criminal association.
Among the civilians, Diego Cuiñas was accused of aggravated influence peddling and criminal association aggravated by his position as a public official.According to information provided at the time by the newspaper El Observador, the other two civilians accused included a person responsible for a social club and a resident of Taroco in the Peñarol neighborhood, who organized a meeting with Taroco, Cuiñas and Penadés.
