👉 Un senador entrerriano está bajo investigación por la posesión de una gran suma de dinero y su posible intención de invertir en inmuebles en Paraguay, donde los precios han subido recientemente. La situación ha generado preguntas sobre el origen del dinero y las implicaciones fiscales. Las autoridades también están investigando posibles conexiones con el lavado de activos y el crimen organizado, especialmente en la región fronteriza entre Argentina, Brasil y Paraguay.
👉 Seguí en #ElNoticieroDeA24
👉 Seguí en #ElNoticieroDeA24
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NewsTranscript
00:00This is the photo of the moment of the seizure of the money of Senator Cuéllar.
00:12What you are seeing on the screen is the action of the NIT, which is the address to which our colleague Diego Martínez had recently referred from Paraguay.
00:23This is the moment when the police check in El Paso Fronterizo and realize what ends up becoming the news of the day.
00:39The truck of the Argentine Senator Cuéllar in El Paso Fronterizo, checked by inspectors of the Paraguayan National Directorate,
00:49and finding, precisely, the 200,000 dollars.
00:56And as Javi said, it was never denied that they were there, right?
00:59In principle, apparently, it was not denied that there were dollars.
01:02When, of course, they checked and found a kind of bag, a bag there in the sector of the box.
01:10There they asked him what was there and he would have answered.
01:16We call it a potential because also the Paraguayan authorities have not given much information.
01:21All the information we are collecting is from extra-official reports.
01:28So far, they have not sent us directly, specifically, with data regarding this.
01:33Of course, one can understand because everything is being investigated and it is logical that this happens.
01:39But when it comes to a senator from another country, the logical thing, as we often claim here in Argentina,
01:46is to give information and then, in any case, complete it with more data that could not be given in the first instance of, let's say,
01:55a conference or a statement, whatever it is.
01:58And we are also waiting for the statement of the Chancellery.
02:02Yes, the Chancellery, for now, nothing, nothing, neither off, nor on, nor anything.
02:07There is no type of information.
02:09We have to see how they are going to move with this.
02:12We have to see what the action of Ambassador Nielsen is going to be.
02:15And it seems to me that in that conversation the future of Quader will begin to be revealed.
02:22Because, we remember, he is in a hotel, guarded by the Paraguayan police.
02:27And we have to see if someone in Argentina, with this background, is going to try to save him or not.
02:33In fact, there are spreading backgrounds of some judicial complications that Quader has.
02:37That will also have to be reviewed.
02:39There is talk of an illicit enrichment cause.
02:42There is talk of a case of alleged laundering too, right, Javi?
02:48He stays in Ciudad del Este.
02:54Because it is the place where the bridge ends.
02:57Where the bridge of friendship ends.
03:00Which is the bridge between Foz de Iguazú and Ciudad del Este.
03:04And apparently he had a reservation in a hotel there in Ciudad del Este.
03:09What did Ciudad del Este do?
03:13Well, obviously, to get part of the money.
03:15This is not known, Diego.
03:17To get or to take?
03:18To take, to get, to pay.
03:20And to take the money, because if ...
03:22He was ...
03:23Forgive me, Diego, let's see if we are wrong.
03:27He was entering Paraguay, right?
03:34From the Brazilian side to Paraguay.
03:36That's why.
03:37He came from Brazil to Paraguay.
03:41That is already confirmed.
03:43Already credited.
03:44Let's see if the information we have still changes, which is the same as Diego's.
03:47No.
03:48Where, if he went through the Argentine customs, the Argentine border,
03:53migration, customs, and the control of the La Fraternidad bridge.
03:58La Fraternidad is the other bridge.
04:00The bridge that connects Puerto Iguazú with Foz de Iguazú.
04:04From Brazil, Argentina to Brazil.
04:06Then a few more kilometers and they pass the other bridge.
04:10That unites Foz de Iguazú with, in this case, Ciudad del Este.
04:15There are two bridges.
04:17So, except that the senator, I ask, I'm asking a question,
04:22just inferring,
04:24has passed clean in Argentina
04:28and has raised money in Foz de Iguazú, Brazil.
04:32Let's see, I guess it's a hypothesis.
04:34I don't know, I don't know.
04:35Very interesting the one that Javier raises.
04:37Javier, while you are watching live the photo of the truck,
04:41the moment when the inspectors check the truck,
04:45there is someone who tells me that they are with an open computer
04:48and making the register of fajo by fajo.
04:51And we are live with Diego Martínez, our colleague from America, Paraguay.
04:55Javi, please repeat that hypothesis.
04:58Let's see.
04:59From Argentina, you can go up to 10,000 dollars.
05:03Yes.
05:04Yes, per person.
05:06He passed the check and escaped.
05:09They noticed him, they let him pass.
05:13Or, he didn't have money, he was inspected and didn't have money,
05:17and he raised that money in Foz de Iguazú,
05:20which is after Puerto Iguazú, when crossing the bridge.
05:24And he needed to transfer it to Paraguay.
05:27And the other question.
05:29According to the unofficial information,
05:31he had a reservation in a hotel in Ciudad del Este,
05:35which is where he is now, in Morado.
05:37Actually, he is staying there under judicial protection.
05:43It doesn't mean that he is under police custody.
05:46He is under protection.
05:47When they call him, he has to go.
05:49Or they are going to look for him.
05:51What was Ciudad del Este going to do?
05:54If he already had a hotel reservation,
05:56what was he going to do?
05:58And then continue the trip to Asunción?
06:00If he was going to Asunción?
06:02These are all questions that I imagine the prosecution is going to ask him.
06:06In the photo that we see,
06:08this photo that we are seeing,
06:09there we go with you, Diego.
06:11That photo that we are seeing on the screen,
06:13split screen, Diego, you can't see it.
06:15We are seeing the moment when they check the truck.
06:18At that moment, they must have already found the money.
06:21That's why they take the photo.
06:24There is the other photo with the detainee.
06:26Let's see if we can put it in full.
06:30One minute, less than one minute.
06:32Because in that photo,
06:34he is wearing a vest.
06:37Diego's vest is a blue vest.
06:40It is not from the police or the army.
06:42It is from the National Tax Administration.
06:46Of course, the NIT.
06:47What would be the FIP here.
06:49Look, Javi, how they put him aside.
06:51One from Paraguayan police.
06:53I can't read.
06:55I am short of sight.
06:57It says, against...
07:01Of course, against economic and financial crimes.
07:05It is a dependency.
07:07It is the official police of the NIT.
07:09And the army.
07:10Yes, it doesn't matter.
07:14There is another photo that is circulating too.
07:16Now they are going to send it to the production.
07:18That is also from another angle.
07:20They took the photo.
07:21Now we are going to show it.
07:24That photo was taken at almost 3.45 am today.
07:28So you can see how long the operation took.
07:31The control.
07:32I will ask again.
07:34Is the senator in jail?
07:36Not in jail.
07:38I think the figure...
07:39Diego, what is the figure?
07:40Is he in jail or not?
07:42That is the question we are asking here.
07:45And we can't answer you yet.
07:47I was throwing some speculations at you.
07:49Because we are waiting for the declaration
07:51of the Intervening Prosecutor.
07:53Which is from the Anti-Contraband Unit of Alto Paraná.
07:56Once that hearing concludes,
07:58which I told you was scheduled for 9 or 10 am.
08:01We will know what is really the appropriate term
08:05when it comes to an Argentinean parliamentarian.
08:08I was telling you, what I speculate,
08:10what I speculate, judging by other experiences,
08:12is that this seems to be a domestic arrest.
08:15Of course.
08:16Because being in a hotel,
08:18not having a house in Paraguay,
08:20is considered a domestic arrest.
08:22And basically, he could not be there for more than 6 hours,
08:25unless there are elements
08:27that the authorities take to impose it.
08:31Of course.
08:32I want to hear again what Orué said.
08:35Remind me, Diego, that Orué
08:37would come to be like the head of the DENIT.
08:41We are talking about Oscar Orué,
08:43who is a lawyer, who is also
08:45the main manager
08:48of the customs and tax department.
08:50That is why he is called the head of the tax department.
08:53And he was the one who received the report
08:55a little after one in the morning,
08:57once this whole procedure started at 12.40 am.
09:00Well, let me hear it again and I'll come back to you.
09:03Yes, he came to the hotel yesterday.
09:07It is really the morning of today,
09:10at 12.40 pm approximately.
09:14The staff of the DENIT
09:17did a routine check
09:19at the International Bridge of Friendship,
09:22which connects Paraguay and Brazil.
09:24And a vehicle was verified
09:28that was entering the territory of Paraguay.
09:31The vehicle was opened
09:35and a package was found.
09:38It was asked
09:41and the person was informed
09:43that he had dollars.
09:45Those dollars were not declared.
09:47We are talking about more than 200,000 dollars
09:49and also more than 600,000 Argentine pesos.
09:53And well, the procedure was carried out,
09:55he was communicated to the prosecutor
09:57and he is at the disposal of the prosecutor.
10:01I understand that he identified himself
10:03as a senator of the Argentine nation.
10:06Dr. Orué,
10:08and this person was released?
10:12The prosecutor was in his hotel
10:16and well, today he has to declare.
10:18I understand that this morning
10:20he will not be able to declare.
10:21If the procedure of the office
10:23and the legal importation was not carried out,
10:25the product will not be returned
10:27and he will not be able to pay anything either.
10:30An initiative is made
10:32and responsibility is determined there.
10:34In most cases,
10:36we are determining smuggling
10:38and the vehicle is seized.
10:41That is the procedure we are operating.
10:45In this case,
10:46we have already informed the Public Prosecutor's Office
10:48and well, the Public Prosecutor's Office
10:50will also act as a consequence.
10:53In parallel,
10:55we are going to open an initiative summary
10:57to determine the responsibility as well.
11:00But that money is totally seized.
11:03For now, what we are going to do
11:05is that today the initiative summary is being opened
11:07to be able to determine
11:09that he will have the right to defend himself
11:11in the area of money.
11:13In such a way as to be able to determine
11:15if we declare smuggling that money.
11:18As it happened at the time of the procedure,
11:22the man practically did not collaborate
11:26in the sense of informing him
11:28what it was, why he brought it,
11:30with what purpose, right?
11:33Well, that is going to be determined
11:35in the initiative summary.
11:37I don't want to give any advice
11:39because in the end,
11:41as the National Director,
11:43in the case of smuggling,
11:45I have the last say, right?
11:47So I have to read all the files,
11:49I have to see all the situations
11:51in such a way as to be able to determine
11:53what is going to happen in this case.
11:55But as I told you,
11:57we are going to comply with what the law establishes.
11:59For being a Senator of the Argentine Nation,
12:01does he have a different treatment,
12:03a special treatment, or the treatment
12:05that is given to him is like any other person
12:07who has violated the law?
12:09We made him aware of the situation.
12:11Personally, I communicated with the Argentine
12:13ambassador in Paraguay
12:15and he made him aware of the situation.
12:17But this is already a situation
12:19that is directly in charge of the Public Ministry,
12:21because he is going to order
12:23whether he is detained or not,
12:25whether the procedures are complied with
12:27in the area of whether or not he has immunity.
12:30What did the Argentine embassy say
12:32about this?
12:34And he did not ask for a report
12:36about what happened.
12:38Well, that's as far as
12:40what Orwe raised.
12:42Interesting, of course, to hear it.
12:44Diego, of course, we want to thank you.
12:46We know that you were also in the air
12:48and you are obviously making the effort
12:50to be with us for a little while.
12:52Give me a closure
12:54and I'm going to give it to Winokur,
12:56because Winokur has just agreed
12:58to accept the sworn statement
13:00of Cuéllar,
13:02which already in itself,
13:04if you take the sworn statement
13:06plus the dollars you had,
13:08there is something that does not close you.
13:10Wait, there I develop it.
13:12Diego, close me from there, please.
13:14We are waiting for a definition
13:16of the Paraguayan Chancellery
13:18that did not publish,
13:20like the Public Ministry,
13:22in its social networks
13:24before an eventual call
13:26to the State, if necessary,
13:28since the parliamentarian,
13:30not having furs here in our country,
13:32requires the assistance of a lawyer.
13:34We will know if the intervening prosecutor
13:36imputes it or not.
13:38Well, Diego, a big hug
13:40and thank you for these minutes.
13:42If necessary, of course,
13:44we go back there to Paraguay,
13:46always very kind,
13:48our brothers from America-Paraguay.
13:50Thank you. Pablo, what's up?
13:52Yes, there the production acceded
13:54to the last sworn statement of Cuéllar
13:56which is from 2021,
13:58that is, it is in need,
14:00first it is in need,
14:02because it did not present
14:04the one of the last years.
14:06This of 2021 is the last
14:08and the total heritage of Cuéllar
14:10was 5,455,940 pesos.
14:12Today we are talking
14:14about 5,000 dollars.
14:16Where did the 200,000 dollars come from?
14:18Well, obviously,
14:20he will have to explain
14:22because, I repeat, in 2021
14:24he did not present
14:26subsequent sworn statements,
14:28he had only 5,000 dollars.
14:30And?
14:32195,000 dollars are missing, Pablo.
14:34Exactly, and although he says
14:36that he has participation in some company
14:38or some other issue,
14:40well, the reality is that
14:42with the salary of a senator
14:44you do not get to collect 200,000 dollars.
14:46Surely he will have to give explanations,
14:48appear some donation,
14:50but at least it is striking.
14:52There in the document
14:54that he presents
14:56as senator of the nation,
14:58what we are seeing
15:00is the sworn statement,
15:02what Pablo was telling.
15:04He makes reference,
15:06and the Paraguayans
15:08of course make it visible,
15:10the senator Ricardo Darío Cuéllar,
15:12DNI so much,
15:14whose photograph appears on foot,
15:16is a national senator
15:18of the province of Entre Ríos,
15:20Buenos Aires, December 2019,
15:22when he assumed
15:24that opportunity.
15:26And the signature of
15:28Cristina Fernández de Kirchner,
15:30who at that time was
15:32President of the House of Senators.
15:34And he speaks of Article 69,
15:36no senator or deputy
15:38from the day of his election
15:40until the day of his death
15:42can be arrested,
15:44except the case of being surprised
15:46by the conclusion of some crime
15:48that deserves death penalty, infamous
15:50or other afflictive,
15:52of what the respective Chamber realizes
15:54with the summary information of the fact.
15:56Look, this is for Argentina.
16:00Now, in Paraguay,
16:04although he is a senator of another country,
16:06I think they consider
16:08that he is a common person,
16:10a foreigner who enters the country.
16:12And they make him go to the hotel
16:14because evidently he is not arrested,
16:16because the crime has not yet been configured,
16:18despite the fact that there is a presumption.
16:20There is a presumption,
16:22obviously, in fact it is so,
16:24of smuggling,
16:26which is a legal figure,
16:28and obviously customs,
16:30and also the presumption,
16:32in this case, of possible
16:34asset laundering.
16:36When you make a transfer
16:38large, very large,
16:40bank transfer,
16:42the bank blocks that money.
16:44It has to be very large.
16:46Why?
16:48Because it is obliged
16:50to find out
16:52if that money can come
16:54from an illicit activity
16:56such as asset laundering.
16:58When you certify,
17:00which is, for example,
17:02the sale of a house,
17:04and you inform the bank
17:06through a written document
17:08and you inform the UIF here,
17:10the UIF makes the rebate
17:12of that information,
17:14which does not take long,
17:16and it is unlocked,
17:18and you can dispose of that money.
17:20That has been done for some years
17:22as a consequence of so much money laundering
17:24that there is in the world
17:26linked to drug trafficking,
17:28to arms, to human trafficking,
17:30to smuggling in general,
17:32but especially by the big criminal gangs
17:34in the world that do it.
17:36We have developed, of course,
17:38the news with a lot of deployment,
17:40with documentation, with data,
17:42but there are still questions.
17:44To know if he is arrested,
17:46to know if he will be able to return to the country,
17:48to know
17:50what the senator is going to say
17:52when they ask him
17:54where he got the $200,000
17:56or what he was going to do
17:58to Paraguay with the $200,000.
18:00Yes, and on a political level,
18:02what is the government going to do?
18:04He is a key vote for the government
18:06in the Senate in Ecuador,
18:08a fundamental ally for the government,
18:10he presides over the Constitutional Affairs
18:12Commission in the Senate,
18:14and he is a man who spoke
18:16to be a candidate for the
18:18Libertad Avanza in Entre Ríos.
18:20So we have to see if they are going to give him a hand
18:22or if he is going to be part of the caste
18:24and they are going to make it apply
18:26everything that has to be applied legally.