The investigation into the bribery allegations rocking the government continued on Friday with the testimony of President Javier Milei’s former digital guru. Fernando Cerimedo, who also owns far-right outlet La Derecha Diario, confirmed to the judge that Diego Spagnuolo, the former disability agency head who is at the center of the scandal, had told him that there was corruption in his agency. 

The judicial probe also saw police carry out new raids and Spagnuolo’s defense team resign.

The scandal broke three weeks ago, when recordings attributed to Spagnuolo were made public. The leaked audios feature a voice accusing the president’s sister and presidential secretary, Karina Milei, of taking bribes from drug companies in exchange for government contracts.

Cerimedo confirmed on Thursday that Spagnouolo told him the same thing heard in the recordings.

People close to Cerimedo told the Herald that Spagnuolo did not mention Karina Milei, but that he did point to Eduardo “Lule” Menem, her right-hand man. The source added that he did not mention any addresses and doubted that Friday’s raids could have been carried out with the information Cerimedo provided, as some local media outlets reported. Judicial sources confirmed to the Herald that the raids were ordered prior to Cerimedo’s statement.

Spagnuolo did not provide any evidence to Cerimedo, the source added.

Cerimedo’s wife, Natalia Basil, works at the Disability Agency. However, he prosecutor did not ask him about that, the source said.

Raids and resignations

There were other developments in the case aside from Cerimedo’s testimony. The courts raided a safety deposit box belonging to Spagnuolo at the BBVA Bank, where they found US$80,000 and €2,000, according to the Herald’s sister publication, Ámbito. Spagnuolo also saw his attorneys, Juan Aráoz de Lamadrid and Ignacio Rada Schultze, resign their posts. 

In the letter they sent to Franco Picardi, the acting prosecutor, they mentioned “personal reasons” as the cause for their quitting. People close to them told the Herald that the parties “failed to develop the trust required” to carry out a legal defense. 

President Milei has denied any wrongdoing on the part of his sister and other government officials, describing the incident as a media operation orchestrated by Kirchnerism. Analysts have pointed to the scandal as one of the main reasons for the ruling party’s defeat in Sunday’s Buenos Aires province legislative elections.

Three weeks ago, police raided the National Disability Agency, the headquarters of pharmaceutical company Suizo Argentina, the homes of the company’s senior management, and the home of Spagnuolo, who was fired after the audios became public.

In the audios, Suizo Argentina, belonging to the Kovalivker family, was described as the business paying the bribes, as well as being an intermediary between the government and other companies.

The judiciary forbade Spagnuolo and three senior managers at Suizo Argentina from leaving the country.