Latest news with #Manabi
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ecuador court orders 13 more years in prison for former VP Glas
QUITO (Reuters) -An Ecuadorean court on Monday sentenced former vice president Jorge Glas to 13 additional years in prison for misusing public funds allocated to rebuild areas affected by a devastating 2016 earthquake. Glas, 55, is currently in prison serving out convictions in two prior corruption cases and had been due for release in little under three years, but the latest sentence would extend his incarceration until 2041. Carlos Bernal, a former official tasked with leading the reconstruction work in the western Manabi and Esmeraldas provinces, was also given 13 more years. The court said it had applied the maximum possible sentence. The funds for the reconstruction had been raised through taxes, and a judge in the case said there were indications Glas committed embezzlement by using funds earmarked for reconstruction for other unrelated projects. Glas' lawyer argued there was no evidence of misappropriation of public funds for personal benefit or that of third parties, nor harm to the national treasury, and said the case is being used as a tool of political persecution. Glas, who served as vice president under Rafael Correa from 2013 to 2017, was captured by Ecuadorean authorities following a raid on the Mexican embassy in Quito last year, which led to the severing of diplomatic ties between Ecuador and Mexico.
ABC News
2 days ago
- Politics
- ABC News
Ecuador's former vice-president Jorge Glas sentenced after dramatic embassy raid
An Ecuadorian court has sentenced former vice president Jorge Glas to 13 additional years in prison for misusing public funds allocated to rebuild areas affected by a devastating 2016 earthquake. Glas, 55, is currently in prison serving out convictions in two prior corruption cases and had been due for release in little under three years. However, Monday's sentence means his jail time is extended until 2041. The court said it had applied the maximum possible sentence. The politician, who had served as vice president under the leftist Rafael Correa, was captured by Ecuadorian authorities following a raid on the Mexican embassy in Quito last year. The raid led to the severing of diplomatic ties between Ecuador and Mexico, and prompted Mexico to put in a complaint to the International Court of Justice (ICJ). Mexico maintained Ecuador violated international law by breaching the embassy, while Ecuador accused its counterpart of illegally granting asylum to Glas. Glas's court case had revolved around the reconstruction work carried out after a devastating earthquake in Ecuador's coastal provinces of Manabi and Esmeraldas in 2016, which left nearly 700 people dead. The Supreme Court in Quito ruled that Glas did not use the millions of dollars collected from Ecuadorian taxes towards the reconstruction for that purpose. Some of the money was used to build a bridge in a remote area far from the disaster zone. Carlos Bernal, a former official tasked with leading the reconstruction work, was also given 13 more years in jail. Glas's lawyer argued there was no evidence of misappropriation of public funds for personal benefit or that of third parties, nor harm to the national treasury. During the trial, Glas insisted he had no access to the earthquake reconstruction fund and did not manage contracts awarded by the reconstruction committee. He has long argued that he is a "politically persecuted person". Supporters were quick to condemn the court ruling. Sacha Llorenti, General Coordinator of the International Commitee for the Freedom of Jorge Glas, called it "outrageous and abhorrent". "Without evidence, political decisions are being made to keep Jorge as a political prisoner," he wrote on social media. Outside of court, Glas's defence lawyer Andrés Villegas told reporters the "dignity" of the nation's criminal justice system had been "buried" with the sentence. In 2017, Glas was removed through a decree of Correa's successor Lenín Moreno. Shortly after his removal, Glas was sentenced to six years in prison for leading a million-dollar corruption network between politicians and embattled construction company Odebrecht. The Odebrecht scandal — named after Latin America's largest construction conglomerate — is labelled by the region's legal advocates as one of the "largest transnational bribery schemes ever uncovered". In 2020, Glas was found guilty for his role in a separate scheme where he collected bribes in exchange for issuing public contracts between 2012 and 2016. He was sentenced to eight years in jail. In 2022, an Ecuadorian judge ordered Glas be released from prison, after his lawyers claimed Glas was not safe behind bars. It was after this he sought refuge in Mexico's Quito embassy. ABC/Wires
Reuters
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
Ecuador judge sends former vice-president Jorge Glas to trial
QUITO, May 19 (Reuters) - A judge in Ecuador on Monday ruled former vice president Jorge Glas will face trial for alleged misuse of public funds allocated to rebuild areas affected by a devastating 2016 earthquake. Glas is currently in prison serving out convictions in two prior corruption cases. The attorney general's office had asked that Glas and eight other ex-officials, some of whom are outside the country, face charges in the case. Prosecutors accuse Glas, who led the reconstruction effort for Manabi and Esmeraldas provinces after the earthquake, of misdirecting funds for non-priority works. Judge Marco Aguirre said during a public hearing that there were indications that Glas committed embezzlement by using funds intended for reconstruction for other projects that were not related to the reconstruction in Manabi. The funds were raised through taxes, including an increase in VAT. The prosecution also claims the funds were misused for the benefit of contractors and supervisors involved in the reconstruction. Glas, who served as vice president under Rafael Correa from 2013 to 2017, was captured by Ecuadorean authorities following a raid on the Mexican embassy in Quito last year, which led to the severing of diplomatic ties between Ecuador and Mexico. Glas' lawyer Sonia Vera said in a post on X that the ruling was a sign of "the use of criminal proceedings as a tool of political persecution, in open violation of due process." She added that there was no evidence of misappropriation of public funds for personal benefit or that of third parties nor harm to the national treasury, both essential requirements to establish the crime of embezzlement.
Time of India
03-05-2025
- General
- Time of India
Smoke from train triggers panic among passengers in Jodhpur
Jodhpur: Smoke billowing from Jaipur-Jodhpur Intercity Express on Saturday morning sparked panic among the passengers. Suspecting fire in the train, they got off the train out of panic. The incident occurred near Gotan railway station at about 9.30am. The locomotive pilot, however, applied brakes immediately after noticing smoke, thus averting any mishap. The officials, arranged to dispatch another locomotive from Jodhpur, which first pulled back the train to the nearest station Jogi Magra after reaching the spot. Following necessary checks, the train, with the replaced engine, resumed its journey to Jodhpur at 12.15pm, thus, delaying the train for over two-and-a-half hours. Meanwhile, on the instructions of the DRM (Jodhpur) Anurag Tripathi, a team has been formed to investigate the incident to ascertain the reason for the engine failure. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Manabi: AI guru Andrew Ng recommends: Read These 5 Books And Turn Your Life Aroun... Blinkist: Andrew Ng's Reading List Undo "The team will inquire if the failure of the engine was caused by any technical fault or any maintenance related negligence," said the official. According to preliminary information, train number 22977, the Jaipur-Jodhpur Express, departed for Jodhpur on Saturday at its scheduled time of 6am. Around 9:30am, the train had passed Jogi Magra, but about 2-3 kilometers before reaching Gotan station, smoke was seen emanating from the engine. Noticing this, the loco pilot immediately applied the emergency brakes and stopped the train. According to railway sources, the smoke was caused by a technical fault in the engine. The train was stopped in time, and a technical team was called to the spot. The incident led to suspension of traffic on this track temporarily, which was resumed after the train set off for Jodhpur with the replaced locomotive.
