Juan Pari sentenced to 22 years in prison for embezzlement of 37.6 million bolivianos from Banco Unión
The former head of operations manipulated Banco Unión's computer system to steal millions between 2016 and 2017. Five of the 17 accused received sentences; 12 were acquitted.
Former Banco Unión official receives 22 years in prison for large-scale embezzlement
Juan Pari was sentenced on Tuesday to 22 years and six months in prison for the embezzlement of 37.6 million bolivianos from Banco Unión, according to El Deber. The case, discovered in 2017, reached sentencing after nearly a decade of legal proceedings.
Prosecutor Walter Lora informed the media that Pari will serve his sentence in Chonchocoro penal institution. The convicted man participated in the hearing virtually from El Abra penal facility in Cochabamba, where he remains imprisoned.
Manipulation of the computer system
Pari was arrested in 2017 after an investigation detected irregularities at the Batallas and Achacachi branches, where he worked as head of operations. According to the investigation, between 2016 and 2017 he allegedly accessed the bank's computer system without authorisation and made transfers to a non-existent automated teller machine, a method by which he managed to appropriate the funds.
After obtaining the money, Pari allegedly attempted to launder it through the acquisition of real estate and luxury vehicles. Part of the funds was also allegedly used to finance trips, including the rental of private aircraft, and to establish or participate in various businesses: vehicle rental, construction, tanning, a nightclub and a television channel, among others.
Five convicted and 12 acquitted
Of the total of 17 people accused in the proceedings, besides Pari four others received sentences. One was sentenced to ten years in prison, two to three years each and another to four years in prison. The remaining 12 people were acquitted.
Pari apologised and acknowledged the magnitude of the damage
In his final statement to the court, Pari apologised to the other accused parties and regretted the consequences that the proceedings had on their lives over these nine years. He stated that the other defendants were innocent and pointed out that some would have assumed responsibilities that did not correspond to them in order to bring the trial to an end.
"They have had to assume guilt being innocent in order to finally end this process," Pari declared, and he also acknowledged that initially he had not fully grasped the magnitude of the problem caused by his actions.
The sentence delivered on Tuesday concludes at first instance a criminal proceeding that lasted nearly nine years from the time the embezzlement was discovered.
Source: El Deber