Central America
Former prosecutor arrested for alleged embezzlement of $2.5 million from Honduras’ Central Bank
December 1 |
Former prosecutor Francia Sofía Medina, who previously served at the Special Prosecutor’s Office against Organized Crime (Fescco) in Honduras, has been apprehended by members of the Technical Criminal Investigation Agency (ATIC). She is accused of the alleged embezzlement of approximately $2.5 million from the country’s Central Bank (BCH).
Investigations reveal that these withdrawals took place over the past two years without informing higher authorities within the Public Ministry. She faces charges of money laundering, abuse of authority, and the misappropriation, destruction, concealment, or disablement of documents in custody.
Furthermore, authorities conducted a search on Wednesday at the prosecutor’s residence in San Pedro Sula, Cortés, in the northern part of the country, seeking additional evidence.
Despite being on medical leave since July 2023, Medina submitted two additional refund requests to the Central Bank, which were processed without following proper administrative procedures.
However, the financial institution claims to have documentation supporting all deposits and withdrawals, serving as guarantees requested by authorized prosecutors from the Public Ministry. This information has been provided to the authorities through the San Pedro Sula branch.
Central America
Dengue outbreak in Central America claims 100 Lives, Guatemala hardest hit
In April, the WHO warned that dengue and other mosquito-borne diseases are now spreading much farther and wider from their usual areas due to the effects of climate change.
A hundred deaths have been attributed to a dengue outbreak in Central America this year, with Guatemala being the hardest hit country, responsible for half of the fatalities, health officials reported on Friday.
In Guatemala, 50 people have died from dengue and over 43,000 cases have been reported, nearly six times more than the same period last year, according to a Ministry of Health report.
In Honduras, there have been 29 deaths and around 60,000 cases, while Panama has recorded 12 deaths and over 5,700 cases, with 40 classified as severe, according to official figures.
In El Salvador, three children have died from dengue and there are approximately 3,700 suspected cases.
Costa Rica has reported no deaths but more than 11,000 confirmed cases of the disease. Nicaragua reported only 196 cases with no deaths.
Central America
Bukele and Argentine Minister Bullrich exchange their experiences on security
President Nayib Bukele received the Minister of Security of Argentina, Patricia Bullrich, in San Salvador, on Tuesday in a private meeting in which they exchanged their experiences on security and the fight against drug trafficking.
The Presidential House of El Salvador reported in an X message about the meeting that is part of a tour of the Central American country of the Argentine minister to “know the security methods” implemented by the Government of Bukele.
He added, without providing details, that “cooperation on security issues is getting closer and closer and we are sure that it will contribute to the well-being of both nations.”
For its part, the Ministry of Security of Argentina also indicated in X that Bullrich shared with the Salvadoran president about “the management that is being carried out in the fight against mafias and drug trafficking.”
In addition, he pointed out that the minister learned more about “the successful Salvadoran model” in reference to an emergency regime implemented to fight gangs.
He added that Bullrich also met with the vice president of El Salvador, Félix Ulloa, and thanked him for his collaboration in the visit made by the South American entourage.
In two days of visit to El Salvador, Bullrich visited the megaprison of the Center for the Confinement of Terrorism (Cecot), met with the heads of the Police and the Attorney General’s Office.
Bullrich, the former electoral rival of the Argentine president, Javier Milei, congratulated Bukele on Tuesday through a video for “resturing peace and tranquility” to his country.
The administration of Milei and Bukele are close after the Argentine president assumed his position as president.
Milei was in El Salvador on June 1 in the context of Bukele’s inauguration for a second consecutive term despite being prohibited in the Constitution.
The security policy of the Bukele Government, which has broad popular support, has focused since 2022 on the suspension of constitutional guarantees and mass arrests of alleged gang members through an emergency regime.
This measure was approved by the Legislative Assembly at the request of the Executive in March 2022 after an escalation of murders that claimed the lives of more than 80 people in three days attributed to the gangs, but that journalistic investigations of the media El Faro indicate that it took place after the rupture of a pact between these gangs and the Government.
In fact, the United States Government has sanctioned officials of the Bukele Executive on accusations of coordinating meetings with gang members.
The aforementioned regime has left more than 80,000 arrests and more than 6,000 allegations of human rights violations, including arbitrary arrests and torture.
Humanitarian organizations have also reported more than 300 deaths of detainees, most of them with signs of violence.
Central America
Environment warns that all the rivers of El Salvador have a “high probability of overflows”
The Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (Marn) warned, on Monday, that due to the constant rains and the amount of water accumulated in the soils, all the rivers of El Salvador have a “very high probability of overflows.”
“The observatory reports that all the rivers in our country have a chance of overflowing due to the accumulation of water in the ground and high levels,” the Marn wrote in his account of X.
The institution emphasized on making the call not to cross rivers, ravines or lakes, because the rebounds of the currents can cause people to drag and cause them to die.
El Marn also indicated that due to the heavy rains and humidity in the soils there is a high probability of urban flooding, overflows of ravines and flooding.
El Salvador has been hit by constant stormy rains since Friday, but which intensified on Saturday. These climatic conditions, according to the Environment, continue to be associated with the depressive camp in the northwest of Central America, with the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ZCI), which are bringing moisture to the country.
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