New setback for Tapia and Toviggino: the House refused to dismiss them and supported the investigation for withholding contributions

The Argentine Football Association (AFA) suffered a new judicial setback in the case that investigates alleged irregularities in the management of funds. The Economic Criminal Chamber rejected an argument put forward by the corrupt Claudio "Chiqui" Tapia and his right hand man, Pablo Toviggino, who sought to be dismissed for "the absence of

a crime “.

The ruling, signed by judges Roberto Hornos and Carolina Robiglio, confirmed that the investigation will continue and supported what has been done so far by Judge Diego Amarante, who is in charge of the file. The resolution also aligned with the position of prosecutor Claudio Navas Rial and the complainant body, the Customs Collection and Control Agency

(ARCA).

Depending on the case, the alleged undue withholding of more than 19 billion pesos corresponding to taxes, such as VAT and profits, and social security contributions, is being investigated in different periods between March 2024 and September 2025. According to the fiscal hypothesis, these funds would have been withheld by the AFA, but not deposited within the legal deadlines, which establish a limit of 30 days after expiration

.

One of the central arguments of the defense was that there were resolutions of the Ministry of Economy and the Tax Collection Agency that suspended tax executions against non-profit entities, such as the AFA. However, the House dismissed that interpretation, arguing that these measures did not eliminate the obligation to pay, but only temporarily limited collection actions

.

In this regard, the court was clear: "The scope of these administrative decisions does not make it possible to clearly rule out the commission of the crimes under investigation,” and emphasized that there is no "obvious absence" of the wrongdoing to justify closing the case in this instance.

On the other hand, in its resolution, the House also imposed the costs of the process on the defenses, considering that they were the losing party in the argument, and noted that it is not necessary to prove bad faith to apply this measure.

It should be remembered that, in addition to Tapia and Toviggino, the file also involves other leaders such as Cristian Malaspina, Víctor Blanco and Gustavo Lorenzo,

all of whom were prosecuted in the first instance.

With this decision, the cause enters a new phase. The House must now analyze the appeals against these proceedings handed down in the first instance and define whether it confirms them, which would pave the way for a possible oral trial, or if it modifies the judicial situation of the accused

.

For now, the court's message is strong: there are not enough elements to rule out the existence of a crime and the investigation into one of the most sensitive groups in Argentine football will continue to move forward.