Lawyer Mauro Barreto, former president of the Alto Paraná Bar Association, said that an alleged illegal-collection scheme continues to operate in the Public Prosecutor’s Office and judicial system of Ciudad del Este. The statements, made in a radio interview, involve serious accusations against authorities and were not accompanied, in the information available, by documents or independent investigations proving them.
Barreto said that prosecutors and employees linked to investigations into trademarks, smuggling, cigarettes and drugs were allegedly pressured to pay periodic amounts to prevent operations. He also said that cases could be directed to specific prosecutor’s offices or judicial divisions in exchange for payment. According to him, the mechanism would have been consolidated during the period associated with Hugo Velázquez and would remain active.
The lawyer also cited an alleged reduction in seizures of large drug shipments on the Paraguayan side, while Brazilian authorities would intercept part of those shipments. The comparison, however, was presented only as Barreto’s opinion: no official figures, statistical series or judicial decisions were provided to verify the extent of the phenomenon.
The accusations extended to the nation’s attorney general, Emiliano Rolón. Barreto said that Rolón would have known about payments in the form of “suitcases” originating in Ciudad del Este and, for that reason, would not break up the system. The statement contains no evidence that the head of the Public Prosecutor’s Office received money or took part in any irregularity. Barreto also spoke positively about his initial relationship with Deputy Attorney General Celso Sanabria, who has worked in the city.
In another set of statements, Barreto criticized the Supreme Court of Justice and accused its justices of protecting one another. He mentioned questions surrounding Analía Carrillo, identified as the daughter-in-law of the court’s president, Alberto Martínez Simón, and Verónica Sienra, the wife of Justice Luis María Benítez Riera and director of constitutional guarantees. The criticism concerns alleged workplace privileges and does not, by itself, establish illegality.
The lawyer said that the Alto Paraná Bar Association and the Association of Lawyers from the Interior had already requested a review of appointments. He also criticized a legislative change related to superintendents of judicial districts, saying the measure would have preserved the same justices’ influence in the regions. Barreto maintained that previous complaints had never led to broad audits, but he did not present, in the interviews, the legal texts or documents needed to confirm his interpretation.