Estimated read time: Less than a minute
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
PANAMA CITY (AP) — A three-member judicial panel sentenced a suspended Panamanian Supreme Court justice to five years in prison for unjustified enrichment in an unusual case of corruption that captured this Central American nation's attention.
The tribunal on Thursday approved an agreement in which former high court justice Alejandro Moncada Luna pleaded guilty to the charges. He was transferred to jail. Moncada Luna had been under house arrest during the judicial process.
In 2009, Moncada Luna was named to a 10-year-term as one of nine Supreme Court justices under the administration of then-President Ricardo Martinelli.
The three-member panel suspended Moncada Luna as a justice in October and placed him under house arrest. It was the first case of a criminal conviction against a member of Panama's highest court.
Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
