Sueños Compartidos: De Vido acquitted and suspended sentences for López, Fatala and the Schoklenders

Federal Oral Court 5, composed of Adriana Palliotti, Daniel Obligado and Adrián Grünberg, acquitted former Federal Planning Minister Julio De Vido and handed suspended sentences to José López, Abel Fatala and brothers Sergio and Pablo Schoklender in the case for defrauding the public administration in the Sueños Compartidos program, promoted by the Mothers of Plaza de Mayo Foundation. This was reported by Crónica and Periódico Tribuna, which attribute the verdict to judicial sources and Agencia NA, respectively.

Acquitted and convicted: coincidences and differences between sources

Crónica indicates that the full acquittal for De Vido was based on the fact that his direct responsibility in the criminal scheme was not proven. The same source notes that other former officials and individuals involved were acquitted along with the former minister, without specifying names.

Periódico Tribuna expands: in addition to De Vido, Carlos Castellano (former official of the Ministry of Planning), Daniel Freidin (former advisor to Fatala) and Daniel Nasif and Karina Nasif (former provincial officials of Santiago del Estero) were acquitted. This list does not appear in Crónica, which constitutes a difference between the two sources.

Regarding the convicted, Crónica mentions Sergio Schoklender and Pablo Schoklender as perpetrators of fraud through fraudulent administration to the detriment of the public administration, and José López as a necessary participant in the same crime. Periódico Tribuna adds Abel Fatala as a co-perpetrator and describes the Schoklenders as necessary participants, not as perpetrators. That discrepancy over the brothers’ role is relevant and is not resolved by the available material.

Sentences imposed and rejection of defense motions

Crónica reports that Sergio and Pablo Schoklender received two and a half years of suspended prison, and that José López received two years of suspended prison. It clarifies that, since none of the sentences exceed three years, none of the convicted will go to prison for this case.

Periódico Tribuna, however, details different sentences: López and Fatala were sentenced to 2 years and 9 months of conditional prison and perpetual disqualification as co-perpetrators of fraudulent administration. Sergio Schoklender received 2 years and 8 months, and Pablo Schoklender 2 years and 4 months, both conditional prison, as necessary participants.

Both sources agree that the sentences are less than three years and therefore do not involve effective prison. They also agree that the court rejected defense motions for lack of validity of criminal action, statute of limitations and nullity of the closing arguments, according to Periódico Tribuna. Crónica does not mention those rejections.

Asset forfeiture and diverted amount: a figure provided by only one source

Periódico Tribuna reports that, by majority, the court ordered the forfeiture of assets seized for a sum of $206,438,454.05, determined as the amount diverted from public funds destined for the construction of social housing. That figure does not appear in Crónica, which only refers generically to the diversion of funds that the Nation transferred to provincial and municipal jurisdictions.

The difference between the two sources is substantial: one quantifies the forfeiture and the other does not. In addition, Periódico Tribuna clarifies that the amount must be adjusted at the time the sentence becomes final, a detail that Crónica omits.

Concrete data emerging from the sources

• Court: Federal Oral 5 (Crónica) / Oral Criminal No. 5 (Periódico Tribuna).
• Judges: Adriana Palliotti, Daniel Obligado and Adrián Grünberg, according to both sources.
• Acquitted: Julio De Vido, confirmed by both. Other acquittals only in Periódico Tribuna: Carlos Castellano, Daniel Freidin, Daniel Nasif and Karina Nasif.
• Convicted: José López and Sergio and Pablo Schoklender, according to both. Abel Fatala only in Periódico Tribuna.
• Sentences: Crónica indicates 2 and a half years for the Schoklenders and 2 years for López. Periódico Tribuna indicates 2 years and 9 months for López and Fatala, 2 years and 8 months for Sergio Schoklender and 2 years and 4 months for Pablo Schoklender.
• Forfeiture: $206,438,454.05, only in Periódico Tribuna.
• Grounds hearing: November 13 at 5:00 p.m., only in Periódico Tribuna.
• Request by prosecutor Diego Velasco: 6 years for De Vido, López, Fatala and the Schoklenders, and 4 years for the rest, only in Periódico Tribuna.

Comparison of sentences and limits of available data

The material does not offer a total of transferred funds or a universe of housing units, so it is not possible to calculate a percentage. The only verifiable operation with the available data is the difference between the forfeiture reported by Periódico Tribuna and the prosecutor’s sentencing request, but these are different units (pesos versus years), so they should not be compared.

Another possible comparison is the difference between the maximum sentences requested by the prosecutor and those actually imposed, according to Periódico Tribuna. For López: 6 years requested minus 2 years and 9 months imposed = 3 years and 3 months difference. For Sergio Schoklender: 6 years minus 2 years and 8 months = 3 years and 4 months. For Pablo Schoklender: 6 years minus 2 years and 4 months = 3 years and 8 months. These operations arise exclusively from Periódico Tribuna’s data and cannot be contrasted with Crónica because that source does not mention the prosecutor’s request.

Document: ruling of Federal Oral Court 5 (not available in the material). Body and date: Federal Oral Court 5, date not specified. Unit: years of prison. Values used: prosecutor’s request 6 years; sentences imposed 2 years 9 months, 2 years 8 months and 2 years 4 months. Operation: simple subtraction. The denominator is the prosecutor’s request, which represents the maximum claim of the prosecution according to Periódico Tribuna.

What remains pending

The hearing on November 13 at 5:00 p.m., where the grounds for the convictions and acquittals will be read, according to Periódico Tribuna. It also remains to be confirmed whether the forfeiture of $206,438,454.05 becomes final and how it is adjusted, and whether the exact sentences and roles of the convicted match what is ultimately published in the ruling. The discrepancy between the two sources on the sentences and roles requires contrasting the full text of the ruling.