| Panama Money
Launderer Luis Martinelli Faked Diplo
Creds Has Now Pled Guilty in EDNY
By Matthew
Russell Lee, Patreon
BBC
- Guardian
UK - Honduras
- ESPN
EDNY COURT, Dec 2
– Luis
Enrique
Martinelli
Linares is
charged with
money
laundering
tens of
millions of
dollars in
bribes on
behalf of a
close relative
who was a
high-ranking
government
official in
Panama.
After
fighting
extradition
including by
skirting
Panama
lockdown, he
says he's
ready to plead
guilty but
does not want
to be
detained. But
he has been
detained.
On November 30,
notice of the guilty plea:
"ELECTRONIC SCHEDULING ORDER
as to Luis Enrique Martinelli
Linares, Change of Plea
Hearing set for 12/2/2021 at
2:00 PM in Courtroom 10A South
before Judge Raymond J.
Dearie. So Ordered by Judge
Raymond J. Dearie on
11/30/2021. (Greenidge,
Catherine)."
And on December 2
(during the US v. Ghislaine
Maxwell trial in SDNY), this:
"– Earlier today, at the
federal courthouse in
Brooklyn, Luis Enrique
Martinelli Linares (Luis
Martinelli Linares) pleaded
guilty to conspiracy to commit
money laundering for his role
in a massive bribery and money
laundering scheme involving
Odebrecht S.A. (Odebrecht), a
Brazil-based global
construction conglomerate. The
proceeding was held before
United States District Judge
Raymond J. Dearie. Luis
Martinelli Linares and Ricardo
Martinelli Linares were
initially arrested at el
Aeropuerto Internacional la
Aurora in Guatemala on July 6,
2020, pursuant to a
provisional arrest request
from the United States as they
were attempting to depart
Guatemala on a private plane.
The defendants were charged on
February 4, 2021, in an
indictment in connection with
this bribery and money
laundering scheme. The
United 2 States
has also requested to
extradite Ricardo Martinelli
Linares, and those proceedings
are ongoing." Watch this
site.
On November 16, U.S. District
Court for the Eastern District
of New York
Magistrate
Judge Marcia
M. Henry held
a detention proceeding. Inner
City Press live tweeted it here.
Martinelli was detained.
Martinelli's
lawyer appealed to EDNY
District Judge Raymond J.
Dearie, who heard the appeal
(and dismissed it) on November
23. Inner City Press live
tweeted it here:
Martinelli's
lawyer: My client is in
administrative segregation in
the MDC. We had an emergency
call with him on Friday but
we're told he can't be
produced today.
Judge Dearie:
Let's proceeding. I have read
all the pleadings.
Martinelli's lawyer: We are
appealing
Martinelli's
lawyer: There has been a long
relationship between US DOJ
and Mr. Martinelli. Perhaps
some of this should be sealed.
This is a sophisticated chess
game to charge Person-1, the
unnamed person in the
indictment.
Martinelli's
lawyer: I've seen murderers
get US immigration deferred
action in a week. But not Mr.
Martinelli. So he left his
home in Miami and left the
country. Martinelli's lawyer:
They we offered to wire them
$7 million from his Swiss bank
account. But they turned it
down.
AUSA:
Martinelli used proceeds from
the sale of his yacht to pay
the $1 million ICE bond. His
proposed suretor just sold a
house at $15 million. He got
fake papers from the Central
American Parliament to flee.
He is a flight risk
Judge
Dearie: I'm generally in favor
of bail. This case is unusual.
Mr. Martinelli's lawyer calls
it a long relationship with
DOJ, but I would call it a
courtship which has not yet
lead to any action.
Judge Dearie: I'm
reminded of the old bromide:
Fool me one, shame on you.
Fool me twice, shame on me.
Being in the MDC is
unfortunate. But there are
boats to the Bahamas,
chartered flights, false
diplomatic credentials...
Judge
Dearie: He is a demonstrated
flight risk. The proposed
conditions do not assure the
court of this gentleman's
return. I enter a permanent
order of detention for Mr.
Martinelli.
Inner City Press
will stay on the case(s)
#CourtCaseCast
***
Your support means a lot. As little as $5 a
month helps keep us going and grants you
access to exclusive bonus material on our
Patreon page. Click
here to become a patron.
Feedback:
Editorial [at] innercitypress.com
SDNY Press Room 480, front cubicle
500 Pearl Street, NY NY 10007 USA
Mail: Box 20047, Dag
Hammarskjold Station NY NY 10017
Reporter's mobile (and weekends):
718-716-3540
Other, earlier Inner City Press are
listed here,
and some are available in the ProQuest
service, and now on Lexis-Nexis.
Copyright 2006-2021 Inner City
Press, Inc. To request reprint or other
permission, e-contact Editorial [at]
innercitypress.com
|
,
