Five Involved in
Argentina's "Suitcase
Scandal" Indicted in
U.S.
BUENOS AIRES -- Five
defendants involved in
Argentina's "suitcase
scandal" were indicted
on charges of working as
unregistered foreign
agents for Venezuela in
the United States,
Argentine authorities
said Thursday.
The five -- four
Venezuelans and one
Uruguayan, allegedly
tried to persuade
Venezuelan-American
Guido Antonini Wilson to
cover up the source of
800,000 U.S. dollars
Wilson brought into
Argentina. U.S.
prosecutors claimed the
cash was used to fund
Argentine President
Cristina Kirchner's
election campaign.
Three of the four
Venezuelans and the
Uruguayan were arrested
in mid-December by Miami
authorities. The fifth
is still on the run.
One of the defendants
has pleaded not guilty
at Thursday's hearing.
Another hearing is
slated for Saturday,
when the defendants can
reiterate their
not-guilty plea or plead
guilty. They can also
choose to cooperate to
commute their sentences.
If convicted, the men
will face up to 10 years
in prison and 250,000
dollars of fines.
Prosecutors have not
charged Antonini for his
cooperation with U.S.
investigators.
Both Argentine and
Venezuelan governments
denied involvement in
the incident, which was
dubbed by Argentine
media as the "suitcase
scandal" since the
800,000 dollars were
brought into the country
in Wilson's suitcase.
The two governments
accused the United
States of seeking to
undermine the friendly
relations between
Argentina and Venezuela
by plotting such a
scandal.
Cristina Kirchner, wife
of former Argentine
President Nestor
Kirchner, slammed
Washington for using a
"vile trick" to smear
her government for its
close ties to Venezuelan
President Hugo Chavez.
Chavez also dismissed
the U.S prosecutors'
allegations as "big
lies".
Argentine customs
officers seized the cash
in Wilson's baggage on
Aug. 4, when he arrived
in Buenos Aires from
Venezuela's capital of
Caracas aboard a plane
chartered by the
Argentine government.
Cristina was sworn in as
Argentina's first female
president in December
after she won the
October presidential
election.
An Argentina's
opposition legislator
attended Thursday's
hearing. The opposition
has urged parliament to
investigate the
allegations. |
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