The jury trial began in the 4th Chamber of Crime of Córdoba and places three former municipal officials at the center. These are Mario Ignacio Rey, Héctor Alejandro Rezk, and Guillermo Alejandro Medina, accused of extorting a security company. The events date back to the beginning of Ramón Javier Mestre's first administration and have reached trial after more than ten years of waiting.
The three former officials face charges of co-authorship of repeated extortion to the detriment of the company Visión Nocturna. Rey is also charged with a failed attempt at extortion for an incident that occurred in 2012. The Penal Code establishes that this crime carries minimum sentences of five years of actual imprisonment.
The jury must analyze a series of pieces of evidence, including recordings obtained through hidden cameras presented by the complainants. Those recordings, made during public and private meetings, include images and voices of the accused. The plaintiff is represented by attorney Karina Zeverín, who defends businesswoman María Constancia Almada.
Ramón Mestre (h) era el intendente de Córdoba cuando sucedieron los hechos
Recordings and complaints as decisive evidence
The plaintiff keeps that the accused demanded money to ensure overdue payments and maintain current contracts. Under those conditions, the hidden cameras recorded meetings in official offices and downtown bars. According to the accusation, a bribery scheme and the demand to hire party activists were exposed there.
The complaining business owners reported that in one of the meetings, a "bribe rate chart" was presented with percentages applied to previous debts. In addition, they were asked to hire people linked to radicalism as employees, even though they would perform tasks within the municipality. In those meetings, the need to recover funds invested in an internal party contest was even mentioned.
One of the charged incidents describes the payment of 22,000 pesos (48.5 pounds) that Visión Nocturna executives delivered in a bar. According to the accusation, the money was intended to unlock municipal payments withheld during the previous administration. This episode forms the basis of one of the most concrete accusations against the three former officials.
Mario Rey, el dirigente radical que fue funcionario de la gestión Mestre, entre 2011 y 2012
More companies involved in similar schemes
The case file also includes the complaint from Centinela, another security company that operated in Alta Gracia. Its executives stated that they had suffered pressure and demands from the same officials. The case indicates that they were also asked to hire recommended personnel under threat of stopping payments or services.
In this case, the accused allegedly requested that a woman be hired to process files within the Municipality. The complaint states that this worker was actually a "manager" willing to collect a salary paid by the private company. In addition, they were instructed to hire several activists as part of the agreement.
The court conducting the trial is composed of judges Luis Nassiz, María Antonia de la Rúa, and Enrique Berger. The prosecution is led by Marcelo Hidalgo, while the defense of the accused seeks to dismiss the evidence. The first hearing included the testimony of plaintiff Almada, a central figure in the judicial process.
