Ex-Morena party leader accused of embezzlement, money laundering

Mexico’s ruling party has filed a criminal complaint against its former national president for embezzlement and money laundering.

Members of the Morena party’s National Executive Committee filed the complaint against Yeidckol Polevnsky directly with Attorney General Alejandro Gertz Manero, federal officials said.

Morena’s executive committee, now led on an interim basis by former lawmaker Alfonso Ramírez Cuéllar, began an audit of Polevnsky’s 2017-2020 tenure on June 10.

The audit, reported the Milenio newspaper, specifically probed Morena’s purchase of real estate while Polevnsky was at the helm of the party. It examined payments she made totaling 809 million pesos (US $35.5 million at today’s exchange rate).

The audit found that payments of 394 million pesos were made to two real estate companies owned by Enrique Borbolla García, a businessman who allegedly collaborated on an embezzlement and money laundering scheme with Polevnsky.

The funds were supposed to be used to complete renovations at properties owned by Morena. But some of the properties didn’t even exist and none of the services paid for was completed, the Morena executive committee says.

“Not a single brick was laid, the party can’t lose that money,” said one member of the party leadership, according to the newspaper Reforma.

Borbolla was arrested in 2014 on charges that he sold an aircraft for 2.5 million pesos but never delivered it to the purchaser. However, he was never convicted.

Polevnsky has denied any wrongdoing while at the helm of Morena, a party founded by President López Obrador.

Source: Milenio (sp), Reforma (sp)