Buenos Aires, Jan 20 (NA) – The Federal Chamber of San Martín resolved this Tuesday to assign territorial jurisdiction to the Federal First Instance Court of Campana to continue the investigation against Luciano Nicolás Pantano and others in a case for alleged money laundering linked to assets located in the Partido de Pilar.
The decision, signed by Chamber Judge Alberto Agustín Lugones, resolves the positive conflict of jurisdiction that had arisen between the Campana court and the National Economic Criminal Court No. 10 of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, as learned by Noticias Argentinas agency from judicial sources.
The Campana court claimed the case on the grounds that the main subject of the investigation is a high-value property located in the town of Villa Rosa, Partido de Pilar.
On the one hand, the court pointed out that the determining point of the alleged money laundering would have occurred in Pilar, where illegal funds would have been used to acquire the property and maintain luxury goods.
On the other hand, the ruling highlighted that since November 15, 2024, the AFA officially registered its change of jurisdiction to an address on Mercedes Street, also in the town of Pilar, Buenos Aires Province.
Criticism of judicial delay
In his ruling, Judge Lugones warned that the lack of a timely decision on the natural judge affected constitutional guarantees.
He emphasized that the Economic Criminal Court failed to decide in a timely manner on territorial jurisdiction, despite prior warnings from other appellate judges on this point.
Finally, the court concluded that reasons of procedural speed and proper administration of justice require that the investigation be carried out within the scope of Campana, ensuring respect for the guarantee of the natural judge established in article 18 of the Constitution.
According to the complaint, on that property there would be collector cars and an Arabian and thoroughbred horse stud farm, an equestrian training track and a heliport, in addition to multiple sports facilities.
For its part, the Economic Criminal Court opposed the transfer on the grounds that the "core" of the conduct was linked to the Argentine Football Association (AFA), whose historic legal domicile is in CABA, and that the alleged prior offense would be fraudulent administration to the detriment of said entity.
To resolve the transfer of the case to the Buenos Aires Aires jurisdiction, the Federal Chamber of San Martín took into account two factors.
