Court admits complaint against Irací Hassler for tax fraud in failed clinic purchase
Santiago's Seventh Guarantee Court declared admissible the criminal action filed by the Municipality against the former mayor and Communist Party deputy. The case involves the failed purchase of the former Sierra Bella clinic.
Hassler will face criminal investigation for irregular sale and purchase of former Sierra Bella clinic
Santiago's Seventh Guarantee Court declared admissible the criminal complaint filed by the Municipality of Santiago against former mayor Irací Hassler, current deputy of the Communist Party, for the offence of tax fraud. According to elmostrador.cl, the action is linked to the failed acquisition of the former Sierra Bella clinic.
The court ordered the complaint to be sent to the Public Ministry together with the attached background information, the agency that must determine the relevance of the requested proceedings. The action was directed nominatively against Hassler and also against whoever proves responsible as principal, accomplice or accessory.
Among the background information presented by the municipality is a ruling from the General Comptroller's Office of the Republic, which established that the sales and purchase process was marked by "a chain of manifestly illegal acts" and by a violation of the principle of administrative probity, with administrative liability for the former municipal chief.
The Municipality also accuses improper management of public assets during the previous administration. The complaint contends that payment decree No. 187 was issued ahead of schedule and without the corresponding enabling municipal decree, and that decree No. 810—which authorised the purchase for $8.252 billion—was signed without the mandatory approval of the Municipal Control Directorate.
The municipality also questioned the granting of an irrevocable special mandate in favour of the private lawyer of the selling party, drafted—according to the action—in collaboration with former municipal officials. In a statement, the entity maintained that that situation allowed the other party to attempt to force the registration of the property with the Property Conservancy, despite an abstention instruction from the Comptroller's Office.
Source: Google News CL — Santiago