In a decision that shakes up the file on the $LIBRA crypto scam, federal judge Marcelo Martínez de Giorgi ruled this Friday to remove all plaintiffs from the case. The measure, which directly benefits President Javier Milei, his sister Karina, and the rest of those under investigation, was celebrated by the defense while the victims are left without representation.
The magistrate upheld a motion of «exception for lack of action» filed by lawyer Daniel Rubinovich, defense attorney for trader Mauricio Novelli. With this ruling, only prosecutor Eduardo Taiano will remain as accuser—an official who, according to judicial sources, has been slowing down the case from the start.
«GRANT the exception for lack of action filed by the defense of Mauricio Gaspar Novelli and, consequently, REMOVE Juan Patricio Marchetto, Alan Vega, Matías Alejandro Paris, Braian Emanuel Quintero, and Martín Romeo from the role of plaintiff party,» reads the ruling. These five victims were represented by lawyers Juan Grabois and Nicolás Oszust, who had been bolstering the investigation with requests for evidence that contrasted with the prosecutor’s passivity.
Martínez de Giorgi argued that the investors did not prove to be «especially harmed» by the maneuver under investigation. «That even if certain investors may have suffered economic losses from buying ‘$LIBRA,’ this alone does not allow concluding that they constitute the direct harm required by procedural law,» the judge stated in his ruling.
The ruling also dismisses the fraud hypothesis by noting that transactions with memecoins involve «inherent risks» and that «any unfavorable economic outcome» cannot be automatically attributed to the investigated conduct. An argument that echoes Milei’s own statements, who compared investing in $LIBRA to going to the casino: «If you go to the casino and lose money, what’s the complaint?»
The decision comes in a context where an official expert report confirmed that Novelli wrote and deleted a text on his cell phone about an alleged agreement of at least $5 million for Milei to promote the crypto asset. Additionally, a Federal Police report revealed that the president lied when he said he obtained the internet contract, when in fact it was provided by the creator of $LIBRA or someone linked to him.
With this measure, Martínez de Giorgi—whose wife Ana Juan was proposed as a judge by Milei—leaves the victims without the ability to advance the case. «It’s a ruling tailor-made for the President,» judicial sources fired off. Novelli’s defense celebrated the removal, while the plaintiffs announced they will appeal the decision.
The $LIBRA case, which investigates an alleged million-dollar cryptocurrency scam and possible bribes to access the president, now rests in the hands of prosecutor Taiano, who had not ruled on Novelli’s motion. The controversy is served: justice or impunity?
para mi este juez martinez de giorgi es un vendepatria un servil del poder apartar querellantes en el caso libra es tapar la corrupcion de milei y sus amigotes la justicia es una joda siempre para los mismos que asco de pais la concha de su madre firme el pepe
kheee? ahora los jueces no pueden fallar a favor del gobierno? para mi esto es lawfare puro y duro, milei no tiene nada q ver con $LIBRA, investiguen a los kukas chorros vayan a llorar a la iglesia zurdos de mierda viva la libertad carajo