Brazilian engineering firm Odebrecht has sued the Colombian state for a second time after authorities canceled pending contracts over the company’s criminal activity, according to weekly Semana.
The report that Odebrecht this time wants Colombia’s infrastructure agency ANI to pay $690 million (COP2.2 billion) comes days after the prosecution victoriously announced that three former executives of the disgraced multinational would pay $6.4 million to compensate for their bribery practices in the country.
According to Semana, ANI claims it owes nothing to the consortium after the devastation caused by Grupo Aval and Odebrecht’s corruption practices.
The disgraced Brazilian firm earlier last year sued the Colombian state for $1.3 billion (4.4 trillion pesos) claiming the government had violated international trade agreements when it canceled contracts because of the company’s widespread corruption practices.
Corrupt AND audacious? Odebrecht sues Colombia for $1.3 billion
The latest lawsuit is supported by a subsidiary of Grupo Aval, the banking conglomerate of Colombia’s richest man Luis Carlos Sarmiento, whose son is investigated for his alleged involvement in the corruption scandal.
The consortium that now is suing the state previously bribed the administration of former President Alvaro Uribe, illegally bankrolled the 2010 campaign of former President Juan Manuel Santos and illegally bankrolled the 2014 campaign of both Santos and his rival, Oscar Ivan Zuluaga.
As if nothing ever happened, Grupo Aval also financed the 2018 election campaign of President Ivan Duque, meaning that the president now owes $4.8 million (COP15.2 billion) to the company.
While Odebrecht’s initial lawsuit against the Colombian state is still being studied, a second arbitrary committee agreed to study the second lawsuit and, according to Semana, is expected to rule on August 5.
The criminal investigations against Odebrecht and Grupo Aval continue, albeit without much hope justice will be served.
The prosecution team that previously destroyed evidence in the corruption case is back in charge of the investigation after the resignation of former chief prosecutor and former Grupo Aval attorney Nestor Humberto Martinez made the special prosecutor appointed by the Supreme Court redundant.
