A former judge details how Walter Bento arrived in Mendoza and entered the federal judiciary

The Trial of Walter Bento

Former federal judge Walter Bento.

But the relationship was not limited to the workplace. They had some mutual friends and even They shared some of their hotel tours All inclusive In Cancun and Chile. But the most striking thing happened In mid-2008, they went to Punta del Este to see a recital by Mexican singer Luis Miguel. Alfredo Rodriguez explained that the original plan was to fly to Buenos Aires and then take a boat to Uruguay.

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However, when they arrived at their first destination, they had lunch Rafael Augusto Garfunkel, a powerful businessman with ties to the hotel and casino worldThe latter offered to take them to the Eastern countries private plane.

“It was a very spontaneous thing,” the witness said. In fact, photos from that private trip have been included in the archives as evidence. In any case, the former judge assured that he did not find the situation alarming, since he had “no case against the businessman”.

The trial will continue on Friday with the final testimony of a witness about the Bento family’s fortune. The former judge was due to make a new investigative statement, but that was postponed.

Walter Bento’s trial November 14, 2023b.jpg

The trial was held in the Federal Court Building.

Christian Lozano/Diario UNO.

Mendoza’s Bribery and Its Connection to Walter Bento

In mid-2020, The so-called businessman Diego Aliaga He disappeared and was later found murderedIn addition to the shocking nature of his crimes, there were rumors that the man had Contact federal justice to remove prisoners from smuggling and drug traffickingThis hypothesis was further supported by conversations found on the phone of Walter Bardinella Donoso, a suspect in financing drug gangs, who was arrested late that year.

he Financial Federation Dante Vega He followed the leads until he decided to order the raid, arrests and charges. May 5, 2021. Among the suspects They included federal judge Walter Bento (who has since been fired and is in custody), his wife Marta Boiza, and several lawyers. The investigation did not end there, and as the months passed, there were other developments and allegations.

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Overall, the investigation concluded that Walter Bento led an illegal organization dedicated to administering bribes to provide benefits to prisoners, such as house arrest or freedom. Aliaga was supposed to be the right-hand man to the magistrate, and his job was to contact people who were in jail for smuggling or drug trafficking. The man offered them favors in exchange for high bribes paid in US dollars or even real estate. They then began to be represented by a defendant lawyer and filed briefs with the magistrate to rule on their release from prison.

Prosecutor Vega One hundred witnesses To support his accusation, in addition to Messages and calls – usually through apps telegraph– The suspect mentioned bribery Judge Bento used some euphemisms. On the other hand, Defense lawyers maintained that this was a case against the magistrate for political reasons.

on the other hand, Prosecutors believe Walter Bento and his family became wealthy and laundered the money through bribery.The U.S. Attorney’s Office said that was evidenced by hundreds of trips the couple took in recent years, properties and vehicles they purchased and business funds they invested.

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