Central America
Trial begins against 10 accused of helping Funes to appropriate more than $351 million
August 15|
In the case known as “Public Pillage” the First Sentencing Court of San Salvador, has begun this Tuesday the public hearing against 10 defendants linked to the corruption network that created the former president of the Republic, Mauricio Funes.
The Public Prosecutor’s Office of the Republic accuses for the crimes of money laundering, embezzlement (appropriation of state property) and special cases of money laundering.
The Public Prosecutor’s Office has more than 2,500 documents, 114 witnesses, financial and tax accounting experts and 21 international assistances, which were admitted in the preliminary hearing and which will begin to be evaluated by the court in the trial scheduled for one month.
The prosecutors intend to prove with financial, accounting and tax expertise that the defendants allegedly appropriated public funds that the Ministry of Finance allocated to the Presidency of the Republic for the reserved expenses between 2009 and 2014.
One of the key expertise is the accounting analysis made by an expert where he confirms that Funes in his presidential term used the mechanism of budgetary reinforcements to appropriate $351,035,400.
This expertise called “Forensic Financial Accounting Audit of Administrative and Functional Management” shows that in the records of the Ministry of Finance, between June 1, 2009 and June 1, 2014, it appears that the budget for the Reserved Expenses item that the Legislative Assembly approved for the Presidency of the Republic was $80,818,285.
But Funes, not satisfied with these funds, devised a criminal plan to increase the secret item known as “Item 54315 Reserved Expenses” through budgetary reinforcements.
The increase was 300% equivalent to $270,217,115.49, leading him to appropriate $351,035,400.49, in his entire administration and the people who today begin to be prosecuted were part of that criminal structure, according to the accusation of the Prosecutor’s Office. Funes fled justice in 2016 to Nicaragua.
As the plan was to lose track of those funds delivered as reserved expenses to the Presidency of the Republic, from the subsidiary account of the public treasury the money began to be transferred to accounts that were in the name of private individuals in the Banco Hipotecario.
The holders of these private accounts were Francisco Rodríguez Arteaga and Pablo Gómez, who were in charge of depositing the money through checks. These two people were also part of the network used by former President Antonio Saca.
According to the Public Prosecutor’s Office, these actions are serious because the accused violated the administrative regulations that already determine the mechanisms to be followed in the management of public funds.
The private attorneys at the time of initiating the trial have presented several petitions. One of them is a peremptory exception of res judicata in the case of Vanda Pignato.
The defense says that she was already judged in a civil trial for illicit enrichment of $135,536.15, funds with which she paid credit cards and other financial products, in that lawsuit she was absolved of responsibility and in this process of Public Plunder are the same facts accused which becomes a double judgment and that she be exonerated for the crime of money laundering.
The defense has also requested the exclusion of José Francisco Cáceres Saldaña, former private secretary of Mauricio Funes, as he was not duly granted the status of criterion witness.
They have also requested that some documents handed over by Cáceres Saldaña not be evaluated since the proper chain of custody was not followed.
They are also requesting not to take into account a point of expertise of a financial accounting analysis made on the reserved expenses and which affects David Rivas, former Secretary of Communications of the Presidency.
THE PENDANTS
1 Vanda Pignato, former First Lady, accused by the Prosecutor’s Office of money laundering and simulation of crimes.
2 José Miguel Antonio Menéndez Avelar, owner of COSASE, accused of money laundering, asset laundering and tax fraud.
3 Juan Carlos Guzmán Berdugo, former father-in-law of Mauricio Funes, indicted for money laundering and asset laundering.
4 Manuel Rivera Castro, former president of Banco Hipotecario, indicted for embezzlement, money laundering and asset laundering.
5 Rigoberto Palacios Panameño, former chief accountant, faces trial for embezzlement.
6 Luis Miguel Ángel García, accused of money laundering and asset laundering.
7 Francisco Rodríguez Arteaga, former financial manager of Casa Presidencial, indicted for embezzlement, money laundering and assets laundering.
8 Pablo Gómez, former technical assistant of the Presidency, accused of embezzlement, money laundering and assets laundering.
9 Jorge Alberto Hernández Castellano, former Treasury chief of Casa Presidencial, indicted for embezzlement.
10 David Rivas, ex-secretary of Communications of the Presidency, accused of money laundering.
Central America
Guatemala Dismantles Largest Cocaine Lab Found in 15 Years Near Mexico Border
Security forces in Guatemala discovered what authorities described as the largest cocaine laboratory dismantled in the country in the last 15 years, located in the southwest near the border with Mexico, officials announced on Wednesday.
Guatemalan Defense Minister Henry Sáenz said during a press conference that the operation was carried out as part of “Operation Ring of Fire,” a large-scale security initiative launched by the Guatemalan government and military to reinforce border controls and combat organized crime, particularly along the Mexican border.
The operation focused on the community of Zanjón San Lorenzo, in the municipality of Ayutla, San Marcos department, where authorities uncovered a sophisticated criminal compound made up of three interconnected buildings equipped to carry out the full cocaine production process.
“What we can preliminarily observe in these facilities is the complete production cycle used to produce cocaine ready for consumption,” Sáenz stated, adding that the investigation remains ongoing and additional findings could emerge.
The minister highlighted the scale and complexity of the laboratory, comparing it to previous major drug seizures in the country.
“The last major laboratory we found was in El Estor, Izabal, in 2019, and that facility only processed coca paste,” he explained.
Authorities arrested eight individuals during the raid and seized a cache of weapons that included 14 military-style assault rifles, three 9mm pistols, and 1,306 rounds of ammunition.
Security forces also confiscated cash totaling 74,461 quetzales (approximately $9,600), $26,787 in U.S. currency, and 118,000 Mexican pesos.
Central America
Opposition leader highlights migration crisis in Panama speech
Opposition leader María Corina Machado recalled on Monday, during her final day in Panama, the thousands of Venezuelan migrants who crossed the dangerous Darién Gap jungle on their journey toward North America in search of better living conditions.
Speaking before Panama’s National Assembly, Machado stated that “more than 500,000 Venezuelans have crossed the Darién in search of freedom,” adding that many did not survive the journey.
Her remarks highlighted the Darién Gap as a central route in the recent regional migration crisis, where thousands of migrants—mostly Venezuelans—have attempted to travel north through one of the most dangerous jungle passages in the Americas.
According to migration data cited in recent years, the Darién route has seen daily flows of over a thousand migrants at its peak, reflecting the scale of the humanitarian challenge in the region.
Central America
Nicaragua’s Alliances With U.S. Rivals Could Trigger More Sanctions, Analysis Says
The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to maintain political and economic pressure on the government of Nicaragua, led by Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo, due to its growing alliances with Russia, China and Iran, according to an analysis released Monday by the Centro de Estudios Transdisciplinarios de Centroamérica (Cetcam).
The report states that tensions between Washington and Managua have increased since the beginning of Trump’s second term and could worsen amid the regional political climate, particularly because of developments in Venezuela and Cuba.
Cetcam researchers noted that since the second half of 2025, the U.S. government has intensified criticism of the Sandinista administration, mainly regarding political prisoners, human rights, religious freedom and what it describes as the authoritarian model established by Ortega and Murillo.
“With this background, it is possible to foresee that Washington will maintain pressure, including sanctions, against the Ortega-Murillo dictatorship,” the think tank stated in its report.
The study also warns that one of Washington’s main concerns is the strengthening relationship between Managua and countries considered strategic rivals of the United States, particularly Russia, China and Iran.
Among the developments highlighted is the recent ratification by the Russian Senate of a military cooperation agreement signed with Nicaragua in 2025. The deal is expected to strengthen strategic coordination and Russia’s presence in Central America for an initial five-year period.
According to Cetcam, the move will “hardly go unnoticed” by the United States.
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