Special independent prosecutor assigned to Land Authority case
By The Star Staff
Former Land Authority director Dorally Rivera Martínez, along with two other former officials of the same agency, have been assigned a special independent prosecutor (FEI by its Spanish initials) who will investigate the possibility that the referred individuals engaged in unlawful actions, authorities said Wednesday.
The Special Independent Prosecutor Panel (PFEI) accepted the recommendation of the Department of Justice regarding the appointment of the FEI that, in addition to Rivera Martínez, includes the Land Authority’s former finance administrator, Astrid Rivera Febres, and former staff engineer Miguel Santiago Irizarry.
According to the Justice Department’s preliminary investigation, the case began with a communication sent to that department by Agriculture Secretary Ramón González Beíro requesting an investigation related to the Land Authority’s Rural Infrastructure and Permanent Improvements Program.
The Justice Department investigation discovered, among other findings, that the aforementioned officials allegedly used public property for personal management and used or permitted public funds to be used for purposes not authorized by law.
“According to the documents included in the record that was sent to us with the preliminary investigation report, evidence emerged to demonstrate that the aforementioned officials could have committed violations of the Criminal Code of 2011, as we related before,” the PFEI specified in the case resolution.
The PFEI added in the resolution on Tuesday that it was determined to accept the Justice Department’s recommendations and appoint Emilio Arill García as FEI and Zulma Fúster Troche as deputy prosecutor to the aforementioned investigation, with a term of 90 days to carry out their investigation.