70 Criminal Judge of Bogotá, with guarantees control functions, approved the opportunity principle for benefit of the former health secretary Hector Zambrano Rodriguez for appropriation embezzlement crime.
Zambrano was favoured in the process context that is being conducted by the committed irregularities during the ambulance services contracting by the district administration in 2009.
The Prosecutor said that the opportunity principle allows the suspension of the criminal prosecution against the former official for a year. In that time the accused is committed to be a prosecution witness in the process.
This will allow Zambrano deliver statements to the Attorney´s Office about the people who irregularly participated on ambulances purchase and contracting, as well as the way were made the arrangements and the distribution of money to contractors in the same case.
The Prosecutor said that the former health Secretary of Bogotá will continue responding to justice for crimes of own bribery, undue interest in contracts conclusion and contracting without fulfilling of legal requirements.
On March 19, judge 67 criminal in Bogota, with control of guarantees, decreed the preventive detention of Zambrano for acts committed between April 22, 2009 and the first half of 2010. The contract subject of the criminal discussion was the 1229 – 2009 between the Health Ministry and the temporary and ambulatory transport Union in Bogotá, for an amount of 63.203 million pesos, of which Zambrano received 9 percent.