Will the vice president of Argentina be sent to prison?
The court in Buenos Aires will rule tonight on the corruption cases of Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, who was accused of a series of corruption cases during her term as president.
If convicted, Kirchner could face up to 12 years in prison.
At the same time, until the end of her term, Kirchner will enjoy immunity.
The trial will take place after three and a half years of discussions.
As mentioned, the lawsuit demands 12 years of actual imprisonment as well as the imposition of a defamation that would prevent her from being elected to any public office.
In other words, in a certain scenario, a conviction could put an end to the political ambitions of Fernandez Kischerner, who intended to run for president again.
Outside the court building in the center of Buenos Aires, supporters of the former president gathered, which are expected to continue until the end of the reading of the sentence.
Demonstration by supporters of the vice president outside the court, photo: AFP
Fernandez de Kirchner and 12 other people, including the national infrastructure minister in her government, Julio de Vido, are suspected, among other things, of biasing state tenders for the construction corporation of Lazaro Baaz, an associate of the Kirchner family from their hometown in Patagonia, Argentina.
Prosecutor Diego Luciani accused Fernandez de Kirchner of running a network of organized crime in order to receive state funds.
"Néstor Kirchner (former president of Argentina; DP) and later his wife, Cristina Fernandez, installed and maintained within the government one of the extraordinary systems of corruption that developed in the country," Luciani said. He called Fernandez de Kirchner "the boss of a criminal organization."
Despite the request for imprisonment, the current vice president enjoys parliamentary immunity by virtue of her position.
To change this status, a special majority vote in Parliament is required.
Also, the road to actual imprisonment - if at all - is expected to first encounter a series of appeals.
On September 1, Fernandez de Kirchner was saved from an assassination attempt when she went to greet the crowd outside her home.
An unknown man named Fernando Andres Savag Montiel (35), who was waiting for her, pointed a gun at her head from point blank range and pulled the trigger, but luckily the weapon was jammed.
Montiel was immediately arrested by the crowd, is in custody and charged with attempted murder.
Around Fernandez de Kirchner, the local opposition was accused of being responsible for the incident and the official investigation is underway.
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