businessmen Nicolas Caputo and Eduardo Gutierrez were pointed out by Vice President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner during the exposure made through social networkswithin the framework of what he called his “right to defense” after the TFederal Oral Court (TOF) No. 2 will deny him the possibility of expanding his investigation on the cause for public works in Santa Cruz.
The former president questioned that prosecutors Diego Luciani and Sergio Mola had not observed the “frequency” with which businessmen Caputo and Gutiérrez, among others, communicated with former Secretary of Public Works José López, before which she showed a series of messages and calls telephone.
Cristina pointed to the “frequency and familiarity of the relationship” of Caputo, personal friend of former president Mauricio Macri; Y Gutierrez, of the Farallon Group, with López, proven in documentation with records of calls between them that the former president exhibited in her defense.
Cristina referred in this way to the record of calls from the telephone that was seized from López on the day of his arrest in the convent of Luján, with details of contacts that occurred between 2013 and mid-June 2016.
The Vice President also recalled that when it was investigated where did the 9 million dollars come from in bundles of heat-sealed US Federal Reserve notes that were in López’s purse, the FED reported that “a bundle had been sent to the Finance Bank. Who was in Banco Finansur? A man called (Jorge) Sanchez Cordoba. Who is Sanchez Cordoba? A man who was part of the board of directors with Macri and with (Daniel) Angelici in (the club) Boca”.
“Luciani says that he spent months looking at the papers, didn’t he see this? Didn’t this degree of familiarity catch their attention? Remarkable,” said Cristina Fernández.
Who are Caputo and Gutierrez
So much Caputo – who would have maintained a total of 109 communications with López between 2013 and mid-2016- as Gutiérrez –with 177 contacts– They are entrepreneurs in the construction industry.
Caputo is the owner of the Caputo Group, whose main firms are Caputo SA, SES SA, Mirgor SA and Sadesa, which -among other things- provide services to the state in public works, with business areas in construction, production of air conditioning equipment and energy.
Politically, “Nicky” Caputo is part of the PROthe party founded by former president Mauricio Macri, with whom he maintains close ties.
Another of those listed Gutiérrez, is the owner of Grupo Farallón, ddedicated to public works during the presidencies of Cristina Kirchner.
In his case, federal judge Daniel Rafecas prosecuted him along with other businessmen such as alleged figureheads of former official José López.
“When the prosecutors see that they do not have any type of evidence, because it was not as they said, because they had adopted the script of the media, they look for evidence in other cases,” Cristina stressed, calling attention to the links “of familiarity and closeness of every day” between López, Caputo and Gutiérrez.
The burial of Sarmiento and other businessmen
Cristina Fernández also made a special mention to the Burial works of the Sarmiento Railwaya tender launched during his last government that was won by Odebrecht and Grupo Iecsa, which established as a condition that the companies were in charge of obtaining financing for the completion of the work.
The vice president pointed out that “six months after” Macri took office, through a DNU signed by the vice president Gabriela Michetti modified the General Budget and financing of $45,000 million was included for the burying of the Sarmiento Railroad.
“What does he do in a budget increase if (the financing) had to come from outside,” Cristina wondered.
“The State unilaterally changes the rules and harms the public treasury”added the vice president.
Next, he recalled that in 2017 -after a complaint was filed for family ties-, it was reported that Iecsa was acquired by businessman Marcelo Mindlin.
“They said they sold it to Marcelo Mindlín, in reality I never believed that too much… that’s the Argentine reality,” Cristina completed.
Mindlin, among other shareholders, is the owner of the firm Sacde, the new name of the construction company after the purchase operation reported in 2017 by the president of Pampa Energía.
In her presentation, the vice president also pointed to the businessman Juan Chediack, former head of the Argentine Chamber of Construction and owner of the Chediack firm.
According to Cristina, in the messages Chediack thanked López for certain efforts and kept him up to date on the progress of some works.
Chediack at the time too declared as repentant in the so-called “Cuadernos” case.
