The Federal Oral Tribunal No. 7 in Buenos Aires advanced on Thursday with the seventh hearing of the trial over the Oscar Centeno notebooks by reading the request to elevate the case to trial, presented by the Financial Information Unit (UIF), which acts as the complainant.
The anti-money laundering agency, currently headed by Paul Starc, named former President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner as the "principal mastermind" of a criminal organization dedicated to the illegal raising of funds during her administration.
According to the complaint, the criminal structure operated between 2008 and 2015 with the purpose of setting up a sustained system for illegal money collection "to enrich themselves illicitly and finance other crimes," taking advantage of the power position of officials of the national Executive Branch.
Like the prosecution, the UIF maintained that Néstor Kirchner and Cristina Fernández were at the head of the organization, and according to the accusation, it functioned from the top of the State. It detailed that the funds were delivered alternately to the holders of the Executive Power or their private secretaries at different addresses, such as Uruguay 1306 and Juncal 1411 in the city of Buenos Aires, as well as the Olivos Residence and the Casa Rosada.
For the UIF, part of the money was redistributed or used to pay other officials.
According to the accusation, to access public works, road concessions or subsidies, companies had to deliver a percentage of the state payments to officials designated to receive these returns.
In the UIF's request to elevate the case to trial, excerpts from previous resolutions were cited that mention briefcases with money taken to homes in Recoleta, Olivos or the Casa Rosada, and then sent to Río Gallegos, pointing out that the evidence leads to sustain that the final destination of the funds were the former presidents.
Regarding individual responsibilities, the complaining agency insisted that Cristina Fernández headed the criminal association, by maintaining that after Néstor Kirchner's death, she consolidated as the main person responsible for a structure that maintained its operation over the years, with the objective of personal enrichment and financing of other illegal activities.
