The hearings for the Cocktails case The defense of the more than 40 people involved who are linked to the leadership of Fuerza Popular continues in the stage of presenting arguments. On July 22, the lawyer of Mark Vito criticized the request of the Public Prosecutor’s Office made by the prosecutor Jose Domingo Perez towards his client for having charged him with the crimes of money laundering and criminal organization.
During his presentation, César Mayta argued that there was no crime committed by Vito as claimed by the Lava Jato Special TeamAlong those lines, he questioned “what crime has Mr. Mark Vito Villanella?” The response was not long in coming from the defense and he exclaimed before the members of the Third National Criminal Court: “simple and categorical: to be the husband of the lady Keiko Fujimorinow ex-husband.”
“All they see is condemning him from now on, for something that does not exist. There is no crime of organized crime, much less money laundering (…) He has always remained outside of political power. Regrettably, that status as a husband has been one of the most important reasons for the Public Prosecutor’s Office to include us in this money laundering investigation,” questioned Vito’s lawyer.
The lawyer also said that Mark Vito is “duly registered” as a real estate agent with the Ministry of Housing, Construction and Sanitation; however, with the investigation by the Cocktails case has stopped working.
“Now he can’t communicate with any of his clients, his company is suspended, he no longer carries out activities because all activity was monitored by the Public Prosecutor’s Office. It was an implacable punishment because they took away his right to work,” said Mayta.
Mark Vito: How many years in prison is the prosecution requesting for the Cocktails case?
During the hearings that took place on July 2, 9 and 10, the prosecutor of the Lava Jato Special Team, José Domingo Pérez Gómez, made clarifications and modified the prison sentences which is requested for the accused in the Cocktails case.
In this way, in the case of Mark Vito, prosecutor Pérez reduced the sentence requested for Mark Vito Villanela and Jorge Trelles Montero. In March 2021, the prosecution requested effective prison sentences of 22 years and 8 months for both. In his oral argument, the representative of the Public Prosecutor’s Office requested for each of them a specific sentence of 20 years and 8 months, for criminal organization and money laundering.
