Paraguay’s Public Prosecutor’s Office charged Capitán Bado Civil and Commercial Court judge Cristhian Ariel Sánchez Zaracho with allegedly attempting to launder assets through the frustration of forfeiture. Prosecutors Christian Benítez and Verónica Valdez Rivas also asked that his judicial immunity be lifted and requested six months to complete the investigation.
The case involves two properties owned by Biocombustible Brasilero S.A. (Biobras S.A.), located in Azotey and forming part of Estancia Nelly: Finca 262, Padrón 56, and Finca 262, Padrón 57. The properties were seized and handed over to the National Secretariat for the Administration of Seized and Forfeited Assets (Senabico), the agency responsible for managing assets seized by the courts.
The assets were linked to criminal proceedings against Brazilian Luiz Carlos da Rocha, known as Cabeça Branca, involving drug trafficking, asset laundering and related crimes. According to the prosecution, precautionary measures were in force, including a ban on altering the properties or entering into contracts involving them, as well as a forfeiture expectation ordered by the criminal courts.
Senabico reportedly informed the judge of those restrictions in August 2023. Even so, Sánchez Zaracho ordered a public auction on November 8 of that year as part of an enforcement proceeding. The two properties were awarded to Grupo Paraná S.A. for G. 2 billion.
Documents issued in October and November 2023 by the Directorate-General of Public Registries, an office under the Supreme Court of Justice, at the judge’s own request, confirmed that the ban on altering the properties remained in force. In April 2024, the judge authorized the provisional registration of the properties in the winning company’s name, but registration was refused because the criminal restriction was still in force.
The Prosecutor’s Office also maintains that the judge allowed people without Senabico authorization to participate in the proceeding and listed Gilberto Suárez, who is facing charges and has an arrest warrant, as the company’s representative. These assertions form part of the charges and will still be subject to judicial review.
The request was sent to the Specialized Criminal Court for Economic Crimes and Corruption in Asunción. The charges do not constitute a conviction: the facts attributed to the judge still have to be investigated and adjudicated.