The Public Ministry launched this Wednesday the Operation Chameleonin which seven people linked to a complex network of corruption and organized crime were arrested.
The charges include embezzlement, fraud against Statecounterfeiting, coalition of officials, smuggling, illicit trade, sabotage, terrorism against critical infrastructure using high technology and identity theft.
The investigations point to the National Institute of Traffic and Land Transportation (INTRANT) as the epicenter of a corruption plot that compromised the transparency of a bidding process.
Under the management of Hugo Beras, the organization modified the requirements to favor the company Transcore Latam SRL in the tender for the “modernization of the traffic system”, an operation that lacked adequate technical or financial justification.
In January 2023, Beras requested the administrative and financial director of INTRANT, Juan Francisco Álvarez Carbuccia, and Frank Atilano Díaz Warden coordinated the contracting of the project, despite the fact that there were no reports supporting the costs.
The Purchasing and Contracting Committee, through minute no. 0002-2023 of February 17, 2023, approved the tender and appointed Samuel Gregorio Cowboy Sepúlveda as coordinator of the experts, a decision that compromised the impartiality of the process since it was Baquero who initially requested the procedure.
One of the most scandalous points of the investigation is that the experience requirements for the tender were drastically reduced to benefit Transcore Latam SRL
Initially, a minimum experience of 15 years was required, but this was reduced to a single year. Additionally, other key requirements, such as the number of controllers worldwide and minimum interceptions, were also lowered, allowing the company to easily meet the criteria.
The bidding process showed more signs of irregularities when only two companies submitted offers: Transcore Latam SRL and the Sustainable Security Consortium.
However, Edwin Yeara, representative of the latter, had links with Mario Alcalá, in turn related to Transcore Latam SRL, which raised suspicions of a conflict of interest.
During the evidence of concept, Transcore did not formally participate, and the Consortium did not present the required elements, which suggests coordination between the parties to legitimize the award to Transcore.
Operation Chameleon has uncovered a network of corruption that affects not only INTRANT, but also the integrity of the bidding processes and the infrastructure of the country’s traffic system.
The authorities continue with investigations to completely dismantle this criminal network.
