The Anticorruption Prosecutor admitted Lisa, S.A.'s criminal complaint through <doc id="pty-202200070875-2023-05-29-a" /> of May 29, 2023, authorizing a full criminal investigation against Villamorey, S.A. for intimidation of a public official and calumny in judicial proceedings, with a provisional civil claim of $44,500,000.00.
Lisa, S.A. filed a criminal complaint before Panama's Anticorruption Prosecutor against Villamorey, S.A., its legal representative Ramiro López Nimatúj, and the law firm Galindo, Arias y López (GALA) for intimidation of a public official (Penal Code Article 360) and calumny in judicial proceedings (Article 384). The complaint alleges that Villamorey filed a baseless criminal complaint against the judge of the Fourth Civil Circuit Court on September 22, 2022, directly within the file of the pending judicial-accounting proceeding (<law id="pty-14606-21" />), to force reversal of the embargo it had decreed against Villamorey through <doc id="pty-14606-21-2022-08-02-a" />; the judge vacated the embargo the following day. Villamorey's complaint against the judge was later dismissed by prosecutors through <doc id="pty-202200067006-2023-04-23-a" />, confirming its lack of legal basis. The Anticorruption Prosecutor admitted Lisa's complaint through <doc id="pty-202200070875-2023-05-29-a" /> of May 29, 2023, authorizing a full criminal investigation with a provisional civil claim of $44,500,000.00.
On September 29, 2022, attorney Julio Rafael Martínez Vásquez filed the <doc id="pty-202200070875-2022-09-29-a" /> with Panama's Primary Attention Prosecutor, accusing Villamorey, S.A. and its legal representative Ramiro López Nimatúj of intimidating the judge of the Fourth Civil Circuit Court to force reversal of an embargo issued in the judicial-accounting proceeding brought by Lisa, S.A. (<law id="pty-14606-21" />). The complaint invokes Articles 360 (intimidation of a public official) and 384 (calumny in judicial proceedings) of the Panamanian Penal Code.
The sequence of events is as follows: on August 2, 2022, the Court decreed the embargo against Villamorey through <doc id="pty-14606-21-2022-08-02-a" />. On September 22, 2022, the law firm Galindo, Arias y López, acting as Villamorey's counsel, filed with the civil court an authenticated copy of a criminal complaint (querella coadyuvante) against the presiding judge, Solange Le Ferrec Malek de Booker. The following day, the judge issued Order No. 1473/14606-21 vacating the embargo. The complaint emphasizes that less than 24 hours elapsed between the intimidating filing and the reversal, which would demonstrate that Villamorey's conduct compromised the judge's independence.
The complaint also notes that a constitutional amparo previously filed by Villamorey against the judge's rulings had already been denied as inadmissible by the First Superior Tribunal, reinforcing the theory that the criminal route was used as a pressure mechanism after ordinary procedural channels had been exhausted without success.
Practical effect: This complaint activated the initial criminal investigation and established the factual framework on which Lisa's formal complaint would later be built.
On May 10, 2023, Lisa, S.A., through attorney Carlos De Icaza Muñoz, filed its formal <doc id="pty-202200070875-2023-05-10-a" /> with the Anticorruption Prosecutor, constituting itself as victim in the investigation opened by the September 2022 <doc id="pty-202200070875-2022-09-29-a" />. The filing charges Villamorey, S.A., Ramiro López Nimatúj, and the law firm Galindo, Arias y López with carrying out a deliberate scheme of judicial intimidation.
Lisa characterizes the filing of a criminal complaint against the judge, directly within the civil case file and without any formal admission, as a maneuver whose sole purpose was to pressure the judge into reversing a decision adverse to Villamorey. The complaint underscores that the conduct against the judge was confirmed baseless by <doc id="pty-202200067006-2023-04-23-a" /> of April 2023, which dismissed Villamorey's complaint against her.
Lisa sets a provisional civil claim of $44,500,000.00 for patrimonial damages, legal costs, lost income, and the economic impact of the paralysis of the judicial-accounting process. The civil action rests on the assertion that the intimidating conduct deprived Lisa of its assets by manipulating judicial bodies and obstructing access to its shareholder rights.
Practical effect: Lisa's formal constitution as victim and complainant grants it active procedural standing in the criminal investigation and enables the civil claim for $44,500,000.00.
On May 29, 2023, the Anticorruption Prosecutor issued <doc id="pty-202200070875-2023-05-29-a" />, admitting Lisa, S.A.'s complaint against Villamorey, S.A. for the possible commission of crimes against public administration (Penal Code Article 360) and against the administration of justice (Article 384). The resolution authorizes a full criminal investigation and recognizes Lisa as complainant and victim.
The Prosecutor verified compliance with the formal requirements of Article 88 of the Criminal Procedure Code: Lisa's standing through Public Registry certifications, identification of the accused, a detailed account of the facts, the legal and factual basis for the civil claim with provisional quantification of $44,500,000.00, and the presentation of evidentiary elements, including <doc id="pty-202200067006-2023-04-23-a" />, which dismissed Villamorey's complaint against the judge. The resolution expressly states that admission does not presuppose that the alleged criminal conduct has been established.
Practical effect: The admission confirms that the Prosecutor finds sufficient elements to investigate Villamorey's conduct and formally opens the path to determining criminal responsibility.
The case is in the criminal investigation phase under the direction of the Anticorruption Prosecutor to determine the criminal responsibility of Villamorey, S.A. and the individuals involved in the alleged intimidation of the Fourth Civil Court judge.