Former judge Tania Irún was unanimously acquitted on Tuesday by the Sentencing Tribunal, composed of judges Rossana Maldonado and Lourdes Garcete and judge Juan Francisco Ortiz. The panel considered that the misconduct accusation failed to prove the necessary intent to constitute the crime, applying the benefit of reasonable doubt.
The case originated from a November 2018 ruling when Irún, then judge of the First Instance Civil and Commercial Court, ordered the transfer of 310,000 hectares of land located in the border security zone in Alto Paraguai to foreign companies. The Public Ministry and an ancillary complaint sought, respectively, prison sentences of three and six years.
In justifying the acquittal, judge Lourdes Garcete stated that the accusation presented a "confirmation bias," deliberately discarding evidence favorable to the defense. She also criticized as "impertinent" the attempt to link Irún's early return from maternity leave to alleged intent, classifying the argument as based on gender prejudices.
Judge Juan Francisco Ortiz emphasized the distinction between a judicial error and a crime, noting that Irún had already faced severe consequences in her career, including dismissal by the Magistrates' Impeachment Jury in 2021. "We cannot say that a judge who made a mistake is a delinquent," Ortiz declared.
In a separate criminal proceeding, the trial of former Petropar president Sergio Escobar Amarilla entered its final phase. He is accused of breach of trust related to a contract for the electrification of the Troche alcohol plant in Guairá department.
The contracted company, MGA Constructora, received an advance equivalent to 50% of the contract value, approximately 12 billion guaranis, but delivered only equipment valued at about 800 million guaranis, which was never installed. The Prosecutor's Office estimates the loss at more than 11 billion guaranis.
During the hearing, former Petropar legal director Engelberto García testified that he recommended executing the contract guarantees due to the contractor's non-compliance. Prosecutor Silvia González maintained that Escobar, as president of the state company, had the duty to control the contract and act to protect public resources after the advance payment was disbursed.