Colombia calls on its ambassador in Guatemala for possible investigation by the Prosecutor's Office of Iván Velásquez, current Minister of Defense

Velásquez: Commission to investigate CICIG unconstitutional 4:10

(CNN Spanish) --

The President of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, rejected on Thursday the "legal actions" in Guatemala that could lead to a possible arrest warrant against his Defense Minister, Iván Velásquez, for an alleged case of corruption in the Odebrecht case in the Central American country.

The Colombian Foreign Ministry called its ambassador in Guatemala City, Victoria González Ariza, for consultations, while Petro said that his government will not allow "corruption" to persecute Velásquez, who for years served as commissioner of the International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala, Cicig, an organization created jointly between the government and the United Nations Organization to investigate cases of corruption.

This Monday, Rafael Curruchiche, prosecutor of the Guatemalan Special Prosecutor's Office Against Impunity, accused former commissioner Iván Velásquez of allegedly endorsing agreements illegally with three former Odebrecht executives, therefore he must answer for "illegal, arbitrary and abusive acts."

Velásquez, who is currently Colombia's defense minister, issued a statement Monday in which he said he had not been notified of any requirements by the Guatemalan authorities, and defended his work at Cicig.

"I have peace of mind that the work carried out in the Central American country was carried out with total transparency and within the legal framework that protected the operation of the International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala," said Velásquez, who reiterated his commitment to "transparency, justice and the fight against impunity".

advertising

Velásquez was part of the International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala (Cicig), whose mandate was not renewed by then-President Jimmy Morales in August 2018.

• Who is Iván Velásquez the new Minister of Defense of Petro for Colombia?

Who is the CICIG commissioner?

2:12

Others involved in the case

In this same case, other Cicig officials are involved, as well as the former Guatemalan attorney general Thelma Aldana, against whom there is already an arrest warrant against her, according to Curruchiche, in addition to other officials.

Aldana, who has been granted asylum in the US since 2020, was previously accused by the Guatemalan Prosecutor's Office of having bought a building for the use of the Public Ministry, allegedly irregularly.

Aldana, who was Attorney General of Guatemala until 2018, remains in the United States after, according to the former prosecutor, the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) revealed that there was a plan to kill her.

Also involved in this investigation are the former president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Guatemala and current honorary consul of Guatemala in Bulgaria, Juan Pablo Carrasco de Groot, against whom an arrest warrant is in progress.

CNN is attempting to contact Carrasco de Groot for comment on the allegations against him.

• Iván Velásquez: Creation of a commission to investigate the CICIG is unconstitutional

Harris and Aldana meet and talk about Guatemala 3:35

the cicig

File photo.

The head of the International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG), Iván Velásquez, from Colombia.

(JOHAN ORDONEZ/AFP/Getty Images)

The Commission against Impunity and Corruption of Guatemala, Cicig, revealed important cases of corruption in the country that involved four former presidents of the country and, ultimately, pointed out then-ex-president Jimmy Morales for illegal electoral financing.

In 2015, together with Guatemala's Attorney General Thelma Aldana, Cicig dismantled the La Línea case, a multimillion-dollar customs fraud ring that investigations say was led by former President Otto Pérez Molina and former Vice President Roxana Valdetti.

Although both pleaded not guilty, they had to drop their charges.

In December 2022, Pérez Molina and Valdetti were sentenced to 16 years in prison for the crimes of illicit association and a special case of tax fraud.

Both were acquitted for the crime of illicit enrichment.

The two have been in prison since 2015 and during the entire time the process lasted they rejected the accusations.

Since September 2017, Cicig, which for 10 years has revealed high-impact cases in Guatemala, has suffered attacks from the government of President Jimmy Morales.

Morales opposed Velásquez's work and in 2017 declared him persona non grata and called for his immediate expulsion.

But this decision was reversed by the Constitutional Court.

In August 2017, the president declared Iván Velásquez persona non grata.

Velásquez has also been critical of the administration of Alejandro Giammattei.

In 2021, he said the president's commitment to US Vice President Kamala Harris to fight corruption "is not a sincere commitment" and that corrupt power has spread in government.

-- With information from Michelle Mendoza from Guatemala. 

CICIGIvan Velasquez