Failed Banco Elca
President Gets 23 Years
Prison
The bankruptcy and
disappearance of Banco
Elca had a high cost
yesterday for its former
president and owner,
Carlos Alvarado Moya: 23
years behind bars.
The Tribunal de Juicio
de Goicoechea found
Alvarado directly
responsible for the
bank's failure and
ordered the unusually
high sentence mainly due
to the fact that the
banker had whitewashed
the banks financial
position.
Judge Edwin Salinas said
his statement that
bankers have a
responsibility to
society.
The prosecution
contented that Alvarado
had manipulated the
banks financial records,
fooling banking
regulators to know that
the bank had financial
problems.
The judges were
presented with evidence
that one particular
client, Night Glow, was
defrauded of us$3
million dollars by
Alvarado, duped into
believing that their
investment in an
offshore Banco Elca
branch was secure and
earning interest.
However, the victim was
provided with false
financial records.
Alvarado was sentenced
to 8 years for major
fraud; 3 years for
fraudulent
administration; 8
years for use of inside
information; and 4 years
for
providing false
banking information.
Found not guilty due to
lack of evidence against
him, was co-accused and
Banco Elca's financial
officer, Javier Filloy.
In a press statement by
defense attorney, Juan
Carlos Sbravatti, the
court decision will be
appealed.
Sbravatti also said that
if the Superintendencia
General de Entidades
Financieras (SUGEF) -
banking regulator - had
had intentions to save
the bank, the financial
collapse of Banco Elca
could have been avoided.
Due to the heavy
penalty, Alvarado was
immediately handcuffed
and taken into
preventive detention,
waiting out the appeal
period before the
sentence is firm, in
jail. |
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