The former senior technician at the Institute for Nature and Forest Conservation fell silent. (ICNF), which started being tried yesterday in the Court of Beja.
The individual is accused of 19 crimes, 9 of passive corruption, 5 of whitening, 2 of improper receipt of advantage and 3 of violation of urban rules by employee.
Paulo Ventura, of 49 year old, he is suspected of having received several amounts of money in the course of illicit intervention within the scope of claims and licensing processes for urban interventions.
ICNF employee since 2009, was placed until February of 2018 in the Licensing and Project Evaluation Division of the Sudoeste Alentejano e Costa Vicentina Natural Park (PNSACV), in Odemira, but, following disciplinary proceedings brought against him., in 15 May 2019 the sanction of dismissal was applied., with termination of public employment relationship.
In the judgment session, the inspector of the PJ de Setúbal responsible for the investigation said that the process began with "complaints to the PGR and PJ and in the investigations, the assets and financial liquidity of the defendant were not compatible with the salary he earned in the ICNF". The investigation concluded that the individual benefited from illicit monetary advantages and goods worth 477.304,13 euros.
When asked about the reasons why individuals who paid the defendant to "benefit from his services" were not in the dock, the investigator justified that "the Public Prosecutor who accompanied the process did not understand it", finished.
The defendant's ex-wife making use of the option that the law provides for being a family member of the defendant, refused to give statements on the facts that occurred until their separation. António Tenente one of Paulo Ventura's “clientsâ€, when questioned by the Public Prosecutor's Office, he “confirmed†that he had paid “5,000 euros to make some drawings of a propertyâ€, justified.
Look Real Mediação Imobiliária and its owner António Alexandre are accused together with Paulo Ventura, and the remaining three defendants in the process are the company Eurocitros,Lda and the managers José Manuel Fayos Mestre and Cristina Fayos Catala, father and daughter, of spanish origin.
The next session is scheduled for the day 10 January 2022, with the Collective of Judges to hear the prosecution witnesses.
Teixeira Correia
(journalist)
