Former Panamanian president Ricardo Martinelli, now in asylum in Colombia, and around 20 other defendants went on trial Monday in Panama on accusations of money laundering linked to bribes paid by Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht. Odebrecht pleaded guilty in 2016 in a U.S. court to paying more than $788 million in kickbacks, mainly across Latin America.
In Panama, the company admitted paying $59 million in bribes to secure contracts during Martinelli’s administration for projects including the Metro, a modern coastal roadway in the capital, and the expansion of the airport.
The anti-corruption prosecutor, Ruth Morcillo, said the Public Ministry was prepared to present evidence to support convictions for those charged with laundering. Martinelli, who faces a possible 12-year prison sentence in this case, is attending the proceedings virtually. He sought asylum in Colombia in 2025 to avoid arrest after receiving a nearly 11-year sentence in a separate money-laundering case.
The hearing, held in a Supreme Court courtroom in Panama City, had been postponed five times due to various legal motions. Prosecutors allege Odebrecht payment orders did not necessarily go directly to Martinelli’s own accounts but that he was allegedly the final beneficiary and had full knowledge the money came from illegal activity.
Martinelli’s lawyer, Carlos Carrillo, rejected the case as political and argued his client’s due process rights had been violated. Former president Juan Carlos Varela and two of Martinelli’s sons are also accused, but will be tried by the Supreme Court at a date still to be set because they have legal immunity as members of the Central American Parliament and Panama’s National Assembly.
Both Martinelli and Varela are barred from entering the United States, which accuses them of corruption. The Odebrecht scandal has implicated leaders across the region. In Peru, former presidents Alejandro Toledo and Ollanta Humala are serving 20- and 15-year sentences, respectively, while former president Alan García died by suicide amid the accusations. In Ecuador, former president Rafael Correa, who lives in Belgium, was convicted in absentia in 2020 and sentenced to eight years in prison.
