Uruguayan court opens criminal probe into cow bond fraud
The move marks a significant step forward in one of the biggest financial scandals in Uruguay, where cows outnumber people.
Conexión Ganadera was the largest of three cattle investment companies that collapsed in late 2024 after attracting nearly 6,000 people or investor pools with promises of returns from livestock ownership.
To date, estimated losses from the three companies amount to roughly $350 million - the majority, some $250 million, from Conexión Ganadera.
"If we're here, it's because the victims weren't paid," Financial Crimes Prosecutor Enrique Rodríguez told the courtroom.
Conexión Ganadera co-founder Pablo Carrasco has been charged with fraud and money laundering. The judge ruled he posed a flight risk and should be detained while awaiting trial. A trial date has not been set.
Carrasco's wife, Ana Iewdiukow, and Daniela Cabral, the widow of his late business partner, were accused of fraud and placed under house arrest.
All three deny the allegations.
The other co-owner, Gustavo Basso, killed himself in a car crash in November 2024, shortly before the company's collapse.
Dozens of people gathered outside the courthouse in Montevideo on Thursday to demand justice. "Many families have been financially destroyed over this," said 47-year-old Doriana Esposito.
Evidence suggests that the money received by the firm over more than two decades was not always invested in livestock and circulated without any legal oversight through a network of companies that diverted funds for other purposes, the prosecution said.
Several investors have been unable to find the animals that contracts show they own, making up a herd of "phantom cows" that could number over 700,000 head of cattle.
The prosecutor said the criminal probe would help determine "with greater precision" the amount of missing livestock.
(Reporting by Lucinda Elliott in Montevideo. Additional reporting by Martín Varela. Editing by Rosalba O'Brien)
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