Overview
- The trial began January 12 in Panama City before Judge Baloisa Marquínez, with Martinelli pleading not guilty via video from Colombia, where he has asylum.
- Anticorruption prosecutor Ruth Morcillo said the Public Ministry will present evidence to obtain convictions for money laundering.
- The proceedings are hybrid and broadcast live, plan roughly 60 witnesses with Monday–Thursday sessions, and the voluminous record suggests the case could run for months.
- Investigators cite tens of millions in Odebrecht bribes in Panama, with the company acknowledging $59 million locally, and the charges carry possible sentences of up to 12 years.
- Former president Juan Carlos Varela and Martinelli’s sons will face separate Supreme Court proceedings due to parliamentary immunity.