Lawyer Pedro Ovelar, legal representative of José Ortiz, explained the legal aspects of his client’s actions before the Bicameral Commission for the Investigation of Money Laundering Acts.
Lawyer Pedro Ovelar, legal representative of José Ortiz, stated before the media that his client appeared before the Bicameral Commission of Investigation of Congress to make himself available and to take advantage of current laws.
In this sense, the lawyer mentioned that in the note calling the CBI it is pointed out that there are documents that reliably show the crime of money laundering and related crimes, for which he argued that since it was not a merely informative meeting, he recommended that Ortiz excuse himself from making a statement.
In this regard, Ovelar recalled that article 195 of the National Constitution, fourth paragraph, establishes that the activity of the investigative commissions “will not affect the exclusive powers of the Judiciary, nor will it harm the rights and guarantees enshrined in this constitution.” It also cited that in article 5, second paragraph, of Law 137/93 “Which Regulates Article 195 Of The National Constitution, Which Institutes The Joint Commissions Of Investigation”, which provides that “if the person cited does not give a statement without excuse himself in the provisions of Article 18 of the National Constitution, he will also be subject to the aforementioned sanctions, without prejudice to the corresponding criminal provisions.
He elaborated that the aforementioned article 18 of the National Constitution, provided for in Law 137/93 as a reason for excuse, is the one that establishes the guarantee of non-obligation to testify against oneself, and expresses the following: “No one can be forced to declare against himself, against his spouse or against the person with whom he is united or against his relatives within the fourth degree of consanguinity or second degree of affinity inclusive”.
Ovelar argued that taking into account that one of the points under investigation by this Commission deals with the SEPRELAD report – leaked in its entirety to certain political actors and, in turn, to the media – which contains irresponsible and unfounded accusations towards the firm TABESA SA -its representatives and shareholders-, if it is supposedly the head and beneficiary of an international money laundering structure, it is clear that the current procedural guarantees must be consecrated.
In addition to requesting all the copies of the documents that the investigative commission possesses, the lawyer asked the same to detail precisely what is the documentation that Tabesa requires in the framework of this open case against him.
“Laws are there to put things in order. It is not that in a bad way we are going to listen and respond as we go. We have not put obstacles, we presented ourselves and asked for all the documentation”, Ovelar reaffirmed.
Finally, regarding Jorge Querey’s attitude, he said that “he is wrong from here to the moon” and that his advisers will let him know that it is juridical, legal and constitutional that a summoned person from the CBI can excuse himself from testifying.
