A prosecutor of the Petroecuador case was suspended; Rafael Correa questions this

The 90-day suspension of prosecutor Segundo Tibanlombo by the Attorney General’s Office forced Judge Karen Matamoros to defer the installation of the preliminary hearing for the bribery offense within the Petroecuador case. 18 people, including Carlos Pareja Yanuzzelli, former Minister of Hydrocarbons; And Alex Bravo, former manager of Petroecuador, are included in the list of the defendants.

Once the judge of the case was notified, she did not install the hearing, postponing it for Tuesday at 09:00. Matamoros read in the diligence a document that was given to him at that moment in which he was informed of the suspension of Tibanlombo for alleged “irregular actions” that would affect the correct justice administration.

Tibanlombo indicated that he was also notified of the disciplinary administrative proceedings against him at that time, but he believed that it had nothing to do with his conduct in this trial. At the same hearing, the prosecutor acknowledged that he could no longer face the case.

Immediately the court clerk also informed the Chamber that prosecutor Tibanlombo had filed a document in which he issued an abstention opinion in favor of seven of the 18 defendants. Judge Matamoros returned the ruling to Tibanlombo and announced the new date for the hearing.