The court holds the court mass in January and delays hearings in February due to the carnival

There will be a celebration next week the final hearingthis year, from the Cuadernos trial, which began on November 6th and in which 26 different types of crimes are tried against 86 defendants. The case, considered the most relevant in the country’s judicial history, will continue until the time of investigation and will be held virtually with two weekly hearings. There is still uncertainty about the date when the debate will resume in Februaryafter the summer fair. The Attorney General Fabiana León asked for precise information about the schedule.

The hearing will take place next Tuesday from 9 a.m thirteen The case in which an illegal association dedicated to the collection of illegal funds is convicted, with durability over time: from 2003 to 2015, the federal judiciary maintained the investigation. A total of 86 people are in the dock, with Cristina Kirchner being the main defendant.

The investigation, carried out by Federal Prosecutor Carlos Stornelli, focused on four axes: the accusations against businessmen that the driver Centeno recorded in his notebooks, the illegal maneuvers to award rail transport contracts and road corridors, and the cartelization of public works.

Based on this scheme, it was established the existence of an illegal association led by Cristina Fernández and her husband, former President Néstor Kirchner, also deceased, which “organized a fundraising system to obtain illegal money in order to enrich themselves illegally and to use part of these funds to commit other crimes.”

The organization – says the indictment – ​​operated within the framework of the national executive and “the leaders and organizers of this parastatal structure designed a fundraising circuit focused primarily on the granting and awarding of public works and/or services, as well as other benefits linked to the development of the relationships of these private entities with the national state.”

Cristina Kirchner comes to this trial accused of being the head of an illegal organization and of being guilty of 204 acts of passive bribery: accepting bribes. In these weeks, the accusations have been read that describe her as the “ultimate recipient of the bribes”, “responsible for giving instructions on the collection”, “who was at the top of the structure and describes corruption”, among other expressions that attribute to her the greatest criminal responsibility.

During the twelve hearings The prerequisites for the elevation to the trial have already been read out in accordance with the central filetwo cases related to the same thing. Subsequently, the reading of the confirmed allegations began in the section “Camarita” (Public Works Publication) and this Tuesday the case, which focused on the bribery structure surrounding the transport service, was closed.

The reading of the requirements for presentation in court, i.e. the details of the maneuver under investigation, the allegations made against the defendant and the evidence on which they are based, will be completed on Tuesday, December 30th.

The Federal Court 7 (TOF 7), composed of judges Enrique Méndez Signori, Fernando Canero and Germán Castelli, decided that the summer justice fair will not be suspendedas suggested by the Court of Cassation, understand the scope of the case being heard.

With this criterion the audience will will resume in February when full activity returns to Comodoro Py’s courts. It has not yet been determined what day this month will be. The Attorney General Fabiana León requested more information in this regard at the end of the hearing on Tuesday. The president of TOF 7 told him The schedule for next year’s hearings will be announced in the coming days.

Knowing that there are holidays in February due to Carnival, the prosecutor’s representative asked Judge Méndez Signori what would happen to the week of February 17th, whether the hearing would actually take place on the 19th of that month – or not. The answer was not specific and The reaffirmed commitment was to present the established schedule next week.

The prosecutor’s proposal is based on the almanac and the holidays planned for February. If the hearing does not take place on February 19thif there was only one this week, which, as León understands, would be inadmissible.

There was another specific question from the prosecutor: Where should the trial take place? Judge Méndez Signori told him that for now “It will continue to be conducted in virtual mode.”

When the trial of the Cuadernos case began, one of the main criticisms that TOF 7 faced was the modality under which it was decided to proceed, namely virtuality. Although the Chamber of Cassation, which has ultimate supervision over the courts of first instance such as the Supreme Court, has recommended in-person attendance due to the importance of the case, there will be no changes for the time being.

In addition, there will continue to be two hearings per week. The Cassation in Superintendence had also recommended increasing the number of meetings to hold the debate. That still won’t change.

The only thing that will take place in person are the investigations against defendants who are willing to testify.. It was not made clear whether in-person attendance will apply only to those who have agreed to present their defense and the rest of the parties will follow the hearing virtually, or whether the change will apply to everyone. In this case, will it happen in the Supreme Court or in Comodoro Py?

It must be remembered that TOF 7 is the only one still functioning in the palace on Talcahuano Street. For this reason, the judges had requested access to the Human Rights Chamber where the trial of the juntas was taking place. Its capacity is smaller than that of the Comodoro Py room, already renovated by the Judicial Council.

All of these points still have the character of questions. TOF 7 simply announced that there are still two weekly hearings and that virtuality will rule for the time being.