Former Economy minister Domingo Cavallo was acquitted today in the trial for the 2001 “mega-swap” deal. The Federal Oral Court found him not guilty of carrying out “negotiations incompatible with public office” and the verdict will be announced on October, 17.
The court ruled on the former minister’s role in choosing the financial institutions that were in charge of the placement of bonds in the debt swaps of Argentina’s public debt titles in 1997-1998 and 2001-2002.
Federal Prosecutor Fabiana León had asked the Federal Court for a three-year prison sentence for the ex minister.
«I have been judged and found innocent, simply because I have never committed a crime,» Cavallo fired after being acquitted, asserting that he had been held up as a «scapegoat» for the crisis of 2001.
Thank you to everybody that has supported me, I am also grateful for those who, respectfully, have criticised and criticise me. I make errors, but always in good faith,» the former Economy minister wrote in his twitter account.
The mega-swap deal was a failed bid to freshen the country’s debt that included the exchange of US$30 billion dollars in debt for new, longer-maturity issues in 2001. The deal rolled over tens of billions dollars until after 2005. It was blamed for increasing the national debt by almost US$40.65 billion dollars overnight via sky-high interest rates, hastening the economic collapse of late 2001.
Source: Buenos Aires Herald