Drugtrial adjourned as defense hears 99 audios

(MENAFN- Newsroom Panama) A trial of 18 people, including the mayor of Los Santos, allegedl;y involved in a major drug smuggling operation broken up in a police operation code- named El Gallero, was adjourned for five hours on Thursday, May 30 while defense lawyers listened to 99 audios obtained during the operation.

Once the trial is resumed, the court will make a ruling in which it will communicate whether the questioning of the Prosecutor's Office to the witness continues or the defense continues to listen to the audios collected by the Directorate of Judicial Investigation (DIJ). Jhon Omar Dorgen, head of the Anti-Drug Division of the National Police. In the case said more than 80 witnesses are cited.

The 18 defendants group are accused of money laundering), public conspiracy to commit a crime and corruption of a public servant

The defendants in the case are: Eudocio Pany P̩rez, (The mayor) Manuel Dominguez Walker said to be the mastermind behind a drug smuggling and distribution organization with a fleet of luxury vehicles including a Lamborghini, at the Los Santos Mayor۪s office.

Manuel Salazar, Gabriel de Jesus Ibarra, Alberto Chavez Chen, Andrés Moreno Zamora, Ernesto Browen, José Antonio Villarreal, Eduardo José Vásquez, Manuel Dominguez Salazar, Luis Omar Alvarez, Jahir Antonio Casanova, Eucaris Domínguez and Katherine Cuesta M.

This investigation began in October 2016, when anti-drug and follow-up operations were carried out, and drugs, weapons, real estate, and vehicles seized.

Six of the accused are in preventive detention and the rest have less severe measures.

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